New PBSI board set up in two weeks

Eva C. Komandjaja and Damar Harsanto, Jakarta

With the Jakarta governor holding chairmanship of the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI), the association's new executive board is expected to be finalized within two weeks.

Sutiyoso was appointed PBSI chairman for the 2004-2008 term over media tycoon Dahlan Iskan at an extraordinary meeting on Saturday. The governor replaces Chairul Tanjung, who was forced to resign because of national players' poor performance during his tenure.

Sutiyoso, whose new post has prompted him to relinquish another at the Indonesian Basketball Association, will be assisted by a special committee of five regional representatives: Koesdarto Pramono for Yogyakarta, H.M. Fahriadi for South Kalimantan, Syahfrizal Ucok for West Sumatra and Mustafa Djide for South Sulawesi/eastern Indonesia.

Sutiyoso is mulling over the right candidate for PBSI secretary-general position, who follows the chairman in rank and responsibility.

"I will choose a person that we can count on... If possible, I will make a selection from a shortlist of those who have been with PBSI," he said on Tuesday, adding that he already had two candidates in mind, but could not yet disclose their names.

Sutiyoso is also considering trimming the association's daily costs by paring down the central board.

For the last few years, PBSI officials have been complaining about the lack of funds for sending national shuttlers -- particularly junior athletes -- to overseas tournaments.

In turn, players' inexperience in regional and international meets has been blamed for Indonesia's dismal performance.

While indicating that more opportunities would given to players, Sutiyoso said the PBSI would be more selective in recruiting athletes to the national training camp.

"There are simply too many of them right now. If they are not able to meet the training camp requirements, they must train in their regions first, so our spending can be controlled," he said.