Preparing food for athletes is not easy

By Fitriyanti Djoni

JAKARTA (JP): Preparing food for athletes is different than serving the general public. Food for sports people has to be prepared according to strict standards set by both local and international sports associations.

In Indonesia, problems surface because the country has 27 provinces, each with its own delicacy. To meet the demand of the 2,000 athletes participating in the ongoing National Games for nutritious and delicious food is not an easy task.

Athletes from certain provinces may prefer meat dishes, but people from different regions may not go for the sweet meat dishes of Java. The Sumatran sports teams may object to such a dish and ask whether it is a main meal or dessert.

Sulastri Aty Soepardan, manager of Nurmaya Sari Catering which was appointed to provide food for the athletes by the National Games Committee, admitted that her party could not possibly satisfy the preferences of all team members from the 27 provinces.

"We have to serve 2,000 athletes, which means that we have to prepare 6,000 portions for three meal times per day. The kitchen staff starts every day at 2 a.m., while lunches are prepared as early as 12 noon. We really work close to 24 hours a day on a shift basis," she said while supervising her staff, who were busy serving up lunches.

The Nurmaya Sari Catering service, which was also appointed to prepare food for athletes during 13th National Games (PON), said officials of every provincial sports team should inform their team members that the menu is prepared according to instructions from the Games committee.

"This food is checked by nutritionists on its nutritional value, hygiene, quantity and quality," she said.

Sulastri also said that the athletes do not all eat at the same time. Some of them ask for breakfast as early as 5 a.m. "We have to serve them without complaint since some have to exercise at 6 a.m. before their matches start.

"There is a sense of devotion and hope that they might be successful. I regard them as my own children, especially the young ones, who easily become homesick and long for their parents, and especially their mothers' cooking."

"We prepare the food here according to the general standards. We do not really prepare the food of one province alone. Take for instance gulai daging kalio, this is food from Padang (West Sumatra), but we do not use the amount of chili that province does," said the youthful-looking grandmother.

Sulastri likes to talk to the athletes while they eat, asking them what they think of the flavor. She especially asks those who have not been to Jakarta before.

For the 14th National Sports Week, Sulastri recruited all her family, including nieces, brothers and sisters-in-law, as well as 100 permanent employees and 50 part-timers. Profit is the least of her concerns with her work for this year's PON.

Compared to other food the company prepares, the food for the athletes is not prepared to suit people's tastes. It is wholesome food, containing roughage, carbohydrates and protein. The menu contains mostly of red meat and chicken, and other various ingredients.

"Today we had empal (dry meat dish), tomorrow we will have gulai daging bumbu pedas (spicy beef stew)," she said elaborately.

Asked whether there had been any complaints about the food served, Sulastri said "so far so good".

The ingredients are repeatedly checked for quality and freshness before preparation. If athletes were to go down with an upset stomach it could affect their performance.

Weight lifters, for instance, require larger servings than regular athletes. The catering staff inquires discreetly about what sports an athlete participates in.

"If athletes have complaints, they do not need to go to the board. We will come up with an alternative, as long as requests are kept within the rules and within our abilities. For instance, athletes and official referees who might have forgotten their food coupon do not need to fetch it from the hotel. They just need to mention which team they belong to and the problem is settled," she said simply.

"They are here to take up the challenging game of sports. We do not hamper them with restricting rules. As long as everything goes smoothly and they perform well, it is enough to make me feel happy," she added.

The PON committee appointed two catering services, Nurmaya Sari and Champa, to serve the athletes during this sports event, the 14th PON. Nurmaya Sari catered from Sept. 7 through Sept. 14, while Champa is catering from Sept. 15 to Sept. 20.

Eddy Pranowo, an employee in the dining hall of the Serba Guna building, said that the athletes are usually quite polite. "If they do have complaints, they should understand that we are only following rules from the board. We are doing things for their own good. If they'd prefer to eat something else, they should wait until the PON games are over. If they come down with an upset stomach after the Games it wouldn't matter so much," he said.

Bernike, a nutritionist, shared Eddy's opinion. "We have done our best to serve highly nutritious food. We hope that our efforts will strengthen the spirits of our athletes, so that they will be successful," she said hopefully.

M. Rausky, a trainer with the Maluku team, commented on how nutritious and varied the food was.

"It is quite tasty. It gives me the chance to taste food from other regions. The food is also nutritious and clean," he said while savoring a meal.

Anita, a softball player in the Central Kalimantan team, found the food fairly tasty and sufficiently varied, although she admitted she could not touch certain dishes.

"It is not about flavor. Maybe we are just not used to that sort of food. Of course, we would prefer food from our region," she said.

Parlin, a West Nusa Tenggara weight lifter, told a different story. In spite of the food's nutritional value, its cleanness and variety, he said the meals for weight lifters could be increased.

"Weight lifters like me need more food than regular athletes, we must not collapse while performing," he explained.

"If the athletes are unhappy about the menu, they have to be honest about it. They should not gripe about it behind our backs. If the food was inferior, we food nutritionists would be the first to know. We would be the first ones to go down with stomach problems if the food was not prepared hygienically," Bernike said.