SEA Games defeat to be studied
JAKARTA (JP): Chairman of the National Sports Council (KONI), Wismoyo Arismunandar, said Friday that KONI would hold a special meeting on Tuesday to evaluate athletes' poor performances in the 20th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games last week.
Wismoyo said he would request officials from 20 sport organizations to give their accountability reports in the meeting.
He also urged the public to wait patiently for the reports, adding he would quit his job as KONI chairman due to his failure to retain the country's top medal winning spot in the biennial event as expected by the public.
"As KONI chairman, I am the country's servant. I am willing to quit my job if it is considered the best solution. But I ask you to see the problem objectively. I ask you to wait for the accountability reports before making any decision."
"I will not look for a scapegoat. Should I resign, I want to do it according to the right procedure," he said.
For the first time since it took part in the games in 1977, Indonesia had to bow out to arch rival Thailand and overall runner up Malaysia by only taking home 44 golds, 43 silvers and 58 bronzes, far less than its estimated 70 golds.
Two years ago in Jakarta, Indonesia claimed 177 of 440 golds at stake in 33 sports event. With only 21 sport events featured this year, Thailand reigned supreme with 65 golds, 48 silvers and 56 bronzes.
Malaysia, the host of 2001 Games, was second with 57 gold, 45 silver and 42 bronze.
KONI's officials had earlier blamed the humiliating performance on the short-term training period and the shortage of funds which had prevented the athletes from going overseas for training.
Some top-ranking sports officials also accused Malaysia of doing everything it could to prevent Indonesia from retaining the overall medal title, such as unfair drawing and influencing the referee's judgment particularly in the sports in which performances were decided by one person's evaluation.
However sports officials have now started to claim responsibility for the failure, while sports organizations are preparing to fire coaches who could not prop up their athletes' performances in the Games.
Indonesia's chef de mission Mochammad Hindarto, was the first to announce publicly that he was ready to resign as KONI's head of athletes' development if the public asked him to.
He said KONI had done its duty by calling the sports organizations to prepare their athletes since early 1998.
Wismoyo followed Hindarto's move by announcing in a ceremony to commemorate Independence Day on Aug. 17 that he would take personal responsibility for the failure. (ivy)