Minister: Prabowo pushes for sports academy establishment

Minister of Youth and Sports Erick Thohir stated that President Prabowo Subianto is encouraging national sports development through the establishment of a sports academy that will train athletes from an early age. According to him, the construction of this sports academy will integrate primary school, junior high school, and senior high school levels as the foundation for developing future athletes. “The President is also pushing for this, especially with a centralised facility called a sports academy that we will start from primary, junior high, to senior high school,” Erick said in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java, on Friday. The plan to build the sports academy is believed to become a fundamental part of the national sports development ecosystem. In addition to discussing the sports academy, President Prabowo also highlighted the importance of welfare guarantees for athletes after they complete their careers. One of the issues discussed was the athlete pension fund scheme, which the government is currently still preparing. During the meeting, President Prabowo also requested that disabled athletes in Indonesia receive genuine attention as part of efforts to provide equal opportunities for all citizens. “The total disabled community in Indonesia is almost 23.9 million or 25.9 million, and those who are keen on sports make up nearly 11 percent. This means the President wants to ensure that these disabled athletes are truly looked after,” Erick said. He conveyed that the President is paying attention to the disabled community in Indonesia who have an interest in sports. Therefore, the government continues to promote various programmes that support the development of disabled sports.