PABBSI urged to let bodybuilders go it alone

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The National Sports Council (KONI) is pushing for bodybuilding to be released from the auspices of the Indonesian Weightlifting, Powerlifting and Bodybuilding Association (PABBSI) to allow local bodybuilders to return to international multievent competition.

"We just hope that PABBSI will have the heart to release bodybuilding from the association, so that bodybuilders could participate in multievent competitions like the Southeast Asia (SEA) Games," KONI chairman Agum Gumelar said on Tuesday ahead of the association's national meeting on Saturday in Jakarta.

PABBSI's membership in the Asian Bodybuilding Federation (ABBF) and the International Bodybuilding Federation (IBBF) were revoked in September last year after it emerged the association supported Musclemania, an international bodybuilding event that the ABBF and IBBF do not endorse.

Indonesian bodybuilders have since been barred from multievent international sporting competitions like the SEA Games and the Asian Games.

ABBF and IBBF sanctioned the establishment of the Indonesian Bodybuilding Federation (FBI), which held the Asian Bodybuilding Championships in Bali in June.

However, KONI has yet to recognize the new federation.

Agum said PABBSI only gained new membership through its association with Musclemania, but added that would be meaningless if Indonesian bodybuilders were still banned from taking part in multievent competitions.

"Our orientation is the SEA Games, we hope PABBSI understands that," he said.

The SEA Games, Southeast Asia's most important sporting event held every four years, is scheduled for the Philippines in November this year. Indonesia, along with Thailand, has traditionally been the major sporting powerhouse at the Games, although other countries have vied for the top of the medal standings in recent events.

Separately, PABBSI secretary-general Alamsyah Wijaya said that the association would have to decide whether to follow Agum's request at its national meeting later this week.

"PABBSI must be realistic about the bodybuilding situation at present. But people must understand that only our regional chapters have the say on whether to release bodybuilding or not," he said.