RI keeps bridge Olympiad hopes alive

RI keeps bridge Olympiad hopes alive

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia rested its trump cards, Henky Lasut
and Eddy Manoppo, but remained too strong for lowly Bangladesh in
the 23rd round of the Olympics of Bridge on Rodos Island, Greece
on Friday.

Second-choice pairings of Giovanni Watulingas/Sance Penelewen
and Denny Sacul/Franky Karwur routed the Bangladeshis 25-5 to put
Indonesia back on track with 442.5 victory points.

With 13 matches remaining, the Indonesians were third behind
Group A leader Poland, which had collected 457 points, and
defending champion France, with 446.

"The time has come for us to win the Olympics. Our games have
been great so far," Indonesian team deputy manager Frans Waleleng
was quoted by Antara as saying.

Frans said Pakistan, Spain and Canada might pose a hurdle to
Indonesia's bid of reaching the quarterfinals. Four teams in each
group will make it to the quarterfinals.

However, Indonesia saw a difficult path ahead to reach the
quarterfinals in the women's competition. The Indonesian women
dropped one place to 15th in Group A with 200 points after 14 of
20 games Friday. They blanked the Philippines 25-0 in the 12th
session, but went down 9-21 to Hong Kong in the next match.

China set the pace with 294 points, followed by Germany, with
276, and the Netherlands, with 273.

A number of Indonesian players and officials were reportedly
battling with flu due to strong winds and a freezing climate,
which was estimated at seven degrees Centigrade. (amd)