Pencak silat to exhibit in 2002 Asian Games
Pencak silat to exhibit in 2002 Asian Games
Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After a period of uncertainty, pencak silat, a traditional form
of martial arts with roots in Indonesia, has been given
permission to compete as an exhibition sport at the 2002 Asian
Games in Busan, South Korea.
"We had a meeting with an official of BAGOC (Busan Asian Games
Organizing Committee) last month, and sealed the issue," Oyong
Kramayudha, chairman of the Asia Pacific Pencak Silat Federation,
told The Jakarta Post here on Monday.
The "compromise" ended a bout of pessimism, stemming from the
indecisiveness on the part of the committee, which seemed to have
a different view with the state's national Olympic committee over
the proposal.
"We talked with the BAGOC deputy secretary-general, and he
said that we could go ahead -- to our relief," Oyong said.
The Busan multi-event sporting spectacle will run from Sept.
29 to Oct. 14, while the pencak silat exhibition will take place
for two days -- from Oct. 5 to Oct. 6 -- with around 20 countries
expected to join.
Sixteen gold medals will be up for grabs. "We are allowed to
put on the medal with the Asian Games logo, but it must bear an
inscription saying that pencak silat is the nation's cultural
sport," Oyong said.
Oyong also announced a plan to hold mass training, followed by
a number of foreign participants. The training site will be at
the Indonesian pencak silat ground in East Jakarta.
"We are seeking to help the countries which have athletes, but
have not established their respective national federations. We
invite them to train here together," he said, adding that South
Korea, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, United Arab Emirates and Oman had
confirmed their participation.
With the pencak silat set to feature in Busan, Indonesia is
hopeful that the sport, the country's gold mine at the Southeast
Asian regional competition, will be officially included in the
Asian Games in the following four years.
In the Indonesian contingent, the pencak silat squad members,
a number of whom have yet to be announced, will add to the 170-
string list, tentatively set by the National Sports Council
(KONI) for the Busan trip.