PASI expels three athletes from center
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After recruiting eight more athletes as part of its long-term preparations for the next Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, the Indonesian Amateur Athletics Association (PASI) sent three home from a training center for technical reasons.
The expulsion of the three -- all junior athletes -- was announced during the organization's meeting here on Tuesday. But Purnomo, a PASI official in charge of junior athletes' development, urged the media not to overreact.
"This should not be exaggerated. It's just a routine occurrence -- some coming in, some going out. We bring in potential athletes but when they show no significant improvement during their time in the training center, they should leave and let others get their chance," Purnomo told The Jakarta Post.
"They may have left, but they still have an opportunity to return to the training center provided that they produce good performances in upcoming tournaments," he said, but declined to mention the names of the three athletes.
The three were sent home from the Purwokerto training center, Purwokerto, Central Java, one of the three athletes grooming sites where PASI is carrying out a long-term training project to train prospective athletes. The other two centers are in Pangalengan, West Java, and Jakarta.
The exit of the three followed PASI's announcement that it had recruited eight athletes to the training ground.
The eight were Nunung Jayadi (Jakarta), Sundari (West Kalimantan), Reza Wijayanti (Central Java), Jauhari Johan (South Sumatra), Evi Wulandari (North Sumatra), Triyono (Central Java), Dudung Suhendi (West Java) and Rohili Maulana (Jakarta).
The entry of the 8 and the exit of the three have left a total of 37 athletes in training, more than fifty percent of whom, according of PASI secretary-general Tigor Tanjung, are juniors.
Irene T. Joseph, Ni Putu Desi Margawati and I Gede Karang Asem will be among the members of the old guard to retain their places in the team, while the young Verry Subnaveu, who took fourth place in the Singapore Marathon last December, is hailed as one of the likely medal winners.
Purnomo said that although they were being groomed for the 2003 SEA Games, the juniors would be expected to produce their best during the subsequent 2005 Games.
Vietnam will host the 2003 SEA Games in December before the Philippines takes over two years later.
The Indonesian athletics team has been the target of criticism following its declining performance in the region with the 2001 Games in Kuala Lumpur signifying its latest dismal outing when it could only bring home three gold medals.