PASI to start training 50 athletes for 2001 SEA Games

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Amateur Athletic Association (PASI) will start grooming 50 athletes in September for the 2001 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Kuala Lumpur.

PASI Secretary General Tigor M. Tanjung said the association was hoping to assemble more athletes to join the training program in two national Grand Prix series which would be held sometime before the fasting month and after Idul Fitri in December.

"We garnered 50 athletes during the 2000 National Games (PON) in June. We are expecting more during the Grand Prix. The 50 athletes will also be tested during the event and those who fail to maintain their personal best will be eliminated," he said on Friday.

Tigor said athletes should continue training during the fasting month.

"They will be evaluated during the Grand Prix so they should continue training. If their physical fitness drops, it is very expensive to return it to the previous level," he said.

PASI will likely use its own money to finance the training as the National Sports Council (KONI) training budget was short.

"We have proposed to KONI to groom 150 athletes for the SEA Games. But KONI said the budget was limited and told us to help fund the training. PASI cannot afford to groom 150 athletes, so we reduced the number to 50."

"We hope that KONI will disburse the money as soon as possible," he said.

The government has allocated Rp 2 billion (US$250,000) to help KONI stage its four-month preliminary training program starting in September. The fund will be disbursed to some 27 sports organizations, whose sports have been ensured a place at the biennial event.

The long-term training program is KONI's ambitious program to reclaim the overall champion title and improve Indonesia's position in the medal tally, after falling to third place behind Thailand and Malaysia last year.

Indonesia considers its achievement in the 1997 SEA Games here as successful. The athletes trained for one year and made Indonesia the overall champion.

In 1999, Indonesia only managed five golds in the track and field alone, from the targeted six golds. Besides the gold, Indonesia also managed 11 silver and three bronze.

In a sports committee meeting in Kuala Lumpur in early August, Malaysia approved 44 track and field events. The country is expected to give confirmation in one month on the events to be staged. (ivy)