Swimmer Elsa back home to be coached by father

Swimmer Elsa back home to be coached by father

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian national women team's leading
swimmer Elsa Manora Nasution is expected to return home today
from the United States, where she had been practicing for the
last three years.

Elsa, a member of the Indonesian 19th Southeast Asian (SEA)
Games team, is being prepared for December's 13th Asian Games in
Bangkok and will be trained by coach and father Radja Murnizal
Nasution.

Meanwhile, SEA Games gold medalist Rita Mariani will fly to
the U.S. today to train for the Asiad.

The Indonesian Swimming Association has sent its nine swimmers
to practice in the United States.

The Asiad training director, Anangga Roosdiono, said on
Friday: "Elsa asked to return home because she was having
difficulty in adapting to her living conditions and her studies.

"Apparently she had a problem in adjusting to the lifestyle in
the country and felt she could not reach her best form.

"There's no use in asking her to stay if she doesn't have the
motivation to be the best. We've spent a lot of money to finance
her," he said.

Elsa was trained by Mike Dickson, who trained her oldest
sister Elfira Rosa Nasution. Elfira was the queen of the SEA
Games in the 1980s.

"The association thinks Elsa is a swimmer with potential. We
expect much from her," Anangga said.

Separately, the head of the association's technical swimming
committee, Lukman Niode, said that Elsa would be trained by Radja
Nasution after returning from the United States.

"Elsa didn't ask to be trained by her father but we'll return
her to him. Her father and the association will discuss her
training program later," he said.

Kompas reported that SEA Games gold medalist Richard Sam Bera,
who recently graduated from studying economics in the U.S., has
returned home.

"Richard has proposed his own training program. He'll return
to the United States in May to keep training with his coach,"
Lukman said. (yan)