Supriati must beat her 5,000m mark to get Olympic ticket

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Amateur Athletics Association (PASI) hopes Supriati Sutono will shave at least 15 seconds off her personal best in the 5,000 meters at the 20th Southeast Asian Games in order to qualify for the Olympic Games in Sydney.

PASI secretary-general Barmawi Chaidir said on Wednesday that the long-distance runner was expected to achieve a time below 15 minutes and 30 seconds -- the minimum Olympic qualification time -- in the Games in August.

"The SEA Games is an event recognized by the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) and Asian Amateur Athletics Association (AAAA)," he said.

Supriati has run 16:11 equal to equal her mark in winning the SEA Games in 1997, during recent training. The time is well outside her national record of 15:54.45 set in her gold-medal run at the 13th Asian Games in Bangkok last year.

Chaidir said Supriati was expected to represent Indonesia in the World Championships in Sevilla, Spain, in August.

Supriati is also expected to retain her SEA Games titles in the 1,500, 5,000 and 10,000 meters in the biennial event from Aug. 7 to Aug. 15 in Brunei Darussalam.

Supriati has recorded 4:21 in the 1,500 meters to equal her record in the SEA Games two years ago.

In the 10,000 meters, Supriati clocked 32:54 in training, 52 seconds slower than when she won the SEA Games gold.

Chaidir said Indonesia would face a tough challenge from Malaysia and Thailand on the track, especially to win the 10 golds expected by the National Sports Council (KONI).

"Two years ago we won eight golds, and two of them were from the marathons. This year, host Brunei will not stage both events, so we will have to work harder to win six golds as expected," he said.

PASI, KONI and the Jakarta administration will stage the Olympic Day Run on Sunday as part of the commemoration of the 472nd anniversary of the capital.

Supriati and men's marathon specialists Eduardus Nabunome and Suyono are expected to take part in the 10km and 5km run.

The start will be at 6:30 am. at the West Plaza of the Senayan sports complex. More than 1,000 participants have registered but PASI hopes about 5,000 will participate. (yan)