Table tennis queen Rossy groomed for SEA Games

Table tennis queen Rossy groomed for SEA Games

JAKARTA (JP): A special training program has been prepared for
Indonesian table tennis queen Rossy Pratiwi Dipoyanti, one of the
country's most promising candidates for winning gold at the
upcoming 18th Southeast Asian Games in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Rossy will undergo an eight-month intensive training program
with foreign players, both at home and abroad, secretary general
of the Indonesian Table Tennis Association (PTMSI), Johny
Woworuntu, said yesterday.

"She doesn't have a match here," Woworuntu said. At the last
SEA Games in Singapore two years ago, Rossy won four golds in the
individual women's singles, the women's doubles (with Putri
Hasiban), the mixed doubles (with Hadiyudo) and the women's team
(with Putri).

Woworuntu said PTMSI had set a target of winning five of the
seven gold medals up for grabs at the SEA Games, scheduled for
Dec. 9-17.

PTMSI will field Rossy in the World Championships in Tianjin,
China, scheduled for May 1-14, where she is expected to take on
Jin Ju Hong, who was China's leading player before becoming a
Singaporean citizen.

The clash between Rossy and Ju Hong will be a crucial match
for the Indonesian in sizing up her opponent prior to their
expected meeting at the Games, Woworuntu said.

He said that at the Games Ju Hong might prove a stumbling
block for Rossy. Ju Hong has achieved great success, beating the
current world number one Den Yaping of China, Woworuntu added.

On the other hand, Rossy has defeated a Korean player who has
downed Ju Hong, Woworuntu said, who was quick to acknowledge that
chances of winning could not be calculated in such a way.

Experience in playing Ju Hong will at least enable Rossy to
build self-confidence.

Woworuntu expects Singapore to field Ju Hong the way Indonesia
fields Rossy. If this happens, the two will meet in the women's
singles, the women's doubles, the mixed doubles and the women's
team.

PTMSI has to decide whether to hire a Chinese coach to help
develop Rossy's technique.

Prior to the World Championships in Tianjin, Rossy, together
with her teammates Fauziah Yulianti and Putri Hasibuan, will
first visit Shanghai, Beijing and other Chinese cities, between
April 21 and April 30, to train with Chinese players and to
prepare themselves for the Tianjin World Championships.

PTMSI will also send Anton Suseno, Hadiyudo Prayitno, Al Arkam
and Dedi da Costa, the national men's leading players, to train
in China. At present, the Indonesian men's team is ranked 21, and
the women's team 26 in the world.

Rossy, together with the rest of the Indonesian table tennis
team, was scheduled to spend 70 percent of their training
sessions abroad. At present, PTMSI is preparing eight male
players and six female players. PTMSI will then shortlist them
into five and four who are eligible for the SEA Games in Chiang
Mai. (arf)