Rowers help Indonesia reclaim third place

Rowers help Indonesia reclaim third place

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Hanoi

Indonesian rowers extended their domination in the 22nd Southeast
Asian Games on Tuesday to help the national squad back into third
place with 26 gold medals and ousting Malaysia to fourth with 23
golds.

Frontrunner Vietnam looks set for its first ever overall
championship title with 73 golds followed by Thailand with 37
golds.

Sayadin achieved an outstanding double victory in the men's
1,000-m K1 and men's 1000-m K2, pairing with La Ode Hadi, at the
West Lake.

The weightlifting competition augured well for Indonesia after
Gustar Junianto, who made a successful comeback after a two-year
ban due to a doping scandal, and Jadi Setiadi rose to number one
in their respective categories.

At the Hoa Binh province, cyclist Santia Tri Kusuma sprinted
to her second gold in the 90 kilometer Mass Start.

She chalked up the best time of two hours 24 minutes and
46.340 seconds to beat Monrudee Chapookam of Thailand who
finished in 2:24:47.060 and Nguyen Thi Hoang Oanh of Vietnam who
clocked 2:24:47.870.

"I'm really happy that I can contribute two golds to the
Indonesian contingent," she said. Her previous victory came from
the Criterium event.

Vietnam's bid for a fitting championship gained momentum with
its soccer team advancing to the final against Thailand.

The host country held off the late charge by Malaysia to
emerge as the 4-3 winner at the My Dinh Stadium while Thailand
will be looking to defend the title with a 2-0 victory over
Myanmar.

The women's soccer final will pit Vietnam against Myanmar.

Indonesia will likely go home without any golds in the
swimming events as it has not won any golds to date although the
competition will close on Wednesday.

Thailand had the most golds with three, followed by the
Philippines with two and Malaysia, Vietnam and Singapore with one
each.

Indonesia grabbed its second silver in diving through Husaini
Noor and Muhammad Nasrullah in the men's synchronized 10m
platform.

SEA Games record holder Richard Sam Bera, who will be 31 on
Dec. 19, claimed the bronze by finishing in third place in 23.73
seconds, less than a second under his own record of 23.03 seconds
in the 50-meter freestyle.

The lackluster performance by national swimmers and divers has
made officials point out a great need for improvement.

"Other countries have shown rapid improvement in swimming with
their young talents well-prepared to fill the shoes of their
seniors," Abdurrahim, secretary-general of the Indonesian
Swimming Association (PRSI), told The Jakarta Post.

National marksman Yoshie Agusta Akbar earned two silvers from
the individual and team 10 running target.

In Ho Chi Minh City, tight rivalry with Thailand was imminent
in the women's tennis singles and doubles. Indonesia is assured a
gold in the mixed doubles with Suwandi and Wynne Prakusya taking
on Hendri Susilo Pramono and Maya Rosa in Wednesday's final.