National horse racing start

JAKARTA (JP): East Java and North Sulawesi will be battling hard to win the first leg of the 31st Soeharto Cup horse racing national championship at Pulo Mas track Sunday.

Last year's champion North Sulawesi, which will host the second series of the Cup in September, has vowed to retain the prestigious title and is keen to ruin East Java's dream of winning the race's first series.

The one-day event with Rp 51 million in cash prizes will feature 11 races. Four of them will be included in the points system which determines which team wins the race.

The 1,850 meter Derby Open is worth 30 points, the most of the 11 races. The three-year-olds 1,400 meters race worth 18 points, the two-year-olds 1,200 meters class A/B worth 12 points and the two-year-old 1,000 class C/D worth nine points.

Putri Ayu and Putri Kenanga from Central Java, Jack Sweet from West Java, Jakarta's Ratu Mayangsari and Ratu Ayu from East Java are the favorites to win the derby.

There will be an exhibition of one-year-old horses to show the success of horse breeding in Indonesia. (rsl)