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)