Ruwiyati slumps to second defeat
JAKARTA (JP): National champion Ruwiyati of Central Java had to eat humble pie again after being outpaced by her hometown rival Hanny Melon, this time in the women's 10,000m, on the third day of the Indonesia Open Track and Field Championships at the Senayan Madya stadium yesterday.
One day before, Melon recorded 16 minutes 55.30 to beat Ruwiyati in the women's 5,000m by a difference of one hundredth of a second. Yesterday the difference got bigger. Melon clocked 35 minutes 49.53 seconds, Ruwiyati 36:09.63.
"About 10 times she trampled on my heels from behind. That was painful and made me feel shaky," the diminutive Ruwiyati told The Jakarta Post.
"This is unusual," noted Ruwiyati's coach, Alwi. "During home training, she usually clocks around 34 at best and around 35 at worst."
"I am very, very disappointed," Ruwiyati said. She admitted that Melon has the speed which she lacks. "She had the advantage of being right behind me. She could closely watch my moves and run past me at the right moment," 17-year-old Ruwiyati said.
Melon, on the other hand, proudly said, "I am the number one. And this is the first time I have taken part in an international event."
However, the country's best long distance runners can be said to have no chance of competing at the Dec. 9 to Dec. 17 Southeast Asian Games in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
"My name has been marked off of the centralized training center list because I have refused to train in this stadium," Melon said. The 16-year-old prefers to train in her hometown Salatiga because it is cooler than Jakarta. "I don't like this stadium (Senayan Madya). I don't care if I'm not included in the SEA Games team. What is important for me is that I am the best in Indonesia."
Ruwiyati is also excluded from the centralized training center. "They (officials of the Indonesian Track and Field Association) say she is too small and hypothesize that she does not grow well because of overtraining," Alwi said.
"This is of course unfair. Her parents are also short and small. How can they expect her to grow taller and bigger?" Alwi said. He added that Ruwiyati came from a farming family in a poor village in Salatiga. "Ruwiyati's parents hope Ruwiyati can help them financially. The decision to exclude her from the national team diminishes the hope," Alwi said.
Thailand yesterday stole the limelight by beating Indonesia in the women's 4x400m relay. Thailand's team clocked 3 minutes 44.39 seconds, far better than the East Java team which ran 4 minutes 0.14 seconds. (arf)