Sutiyoso upset on Games eve

JAKARTA (JP): Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso found last-minute hitches with several sports facilities on the eve of today's opening of the 19th SEA Games, and told his officials to spare no effort to rectify them in the time remaining.

Sutiyoso was particularly upset at the sports hall being used for the karate competition in North Jakarta, which he said was appallingly dirty.

The newly appointed governor has been making final inspections of the various sport facilities since Thursday.

Yesterday, before a ceremony to receive the SEA Games torch from State Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Hayono Isman at the City Hall, he blurted out his anger before reporters.

"How can it be -- the toilets and the shower rooms are so dirty! There are no mirrors, no locks on the doors and no hangers. Where's the locker room?" he said.

He also spotted cracks on the sports hall floor, which he found dusty. Many water taps were also dripping.

"Who developed this facility?" he asked North Jakarta mayor Suprawito, who looked confused and embarrassed.

"Although I was born and raised in a village, this is disgusting," he said of the toilets. "I think foreign athletes will throw up when they see this."

The Jakarta administration has reportedly spent Rp 18 billion building sufficient facilities to support the Games.

"I want all stadium and sports venues to be ready on time. There are no excuses," he said.

"Quit working slowly!" he told his officials at City Hall.

"Don't embarrass Jakarta," he added.

Among the facilities he visited were Danau Sunter (for water skiing) and North Jakarta Stadium (for karate), the Rawamangun Velodrome (for cycling), the East Jakarta Stadium (for sepak takraw) and the Raden Inten Stadium (for gymnastics).

There appeared to be no problems with the facilities in Senayan, where the Games will be concentrated, including the main stadium, the venue for tonight's official opening ceremony which will be led by President Soeharto.

All 10 countries in the region will parade their athletes in the ceremony: Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and host Indonesia.

In spite of fierce rivalry between Indonesia and Thailand for the overall championship title, President Soeharto has emphasized the need to instill the spirit of friendship throughout the Games.

In contrast to the call for an all-out win as often echoed by sports officials, Soeharto underscored the real significance of the Games last week .

"Sportsmanship and friendship in the sporting arena can help create world peace, security and prosperity," he said, because "sport is a part of life worldwide".

Even before the Games began, two records have been broken: the number of sports contested, 34, and the number of athletes taking part: 4,300.

The sports contested include regional sports such as sepak takraw and pencak silat. Beach volleyball and mountain biking are making their SEA Games debut here.

Track and field offers the most gold medals with 44. Shooting comes second with 42, followed by swimming (32), pencak silat and wrestling, each with 20. At the bottom of the list comes water polo (1 gold medal) which only consists of a men's team event.

A well-knit blend of dance, music and acrobatic performances will highlight tonight's ceremony, which starts at 5 p.m.

A team of 40 sky divers from the Indonesian Aerosports Federation and the Indonesian Armed Forces are scheduled to make a precision landing in the stadium.

They will carry the flags of the SEA Games, the 10 participating countries and the Games mascot, Hanoman.

Six thousand high school students, who have been training for months, will show their skills with a card-flashing display of 52 configurations, including logos, the flag of each participating country and Hanoman.

Spectators who trek out to the Jatiluhur reservoir in West Java early tomorrow morning will see which country gets the first medal of the week-long Games. The 1,000m single kayak is due to finish shortly before 9 a.m.

Wrestling, beach volleyball, karate, mountain bike racing and track and field are the last events to be wrapped up; all continue until the very last day of the Games.

The SEA Games Confederation also plans to ease the burden on the host country by deciding which country will stage the event at least four years in advance. (07/rsl)

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