Tarung derajat to be proposed for inclusion in SEA Games
Tarung derajat to be proposed for inclusion in SEA Games
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
State Minister of Youth and Sport Affairs Adhyaksa Dault has
promised to push for the inclusion of homegrown martial art
tarung derajat in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, an official
said on Tuesday.
"The minister vowed to support and simultaneously campaign for
tarung derajat to be put into competition at the SEA Games, and
we will work as quickly as possible to send coaches to countries
that don't have the sport yet," secretary-general of Tarung
Derajat Sports Family (Kodrat) Hermansyah was quoted as saying by
Antara news service.
Hermansyah said the sport was growing in popularity in
Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam, and the association had contacted
several other countries, including Thailand, the Philippines and
Singapore, about establishing tarung derajat associations.
"We are awaiting their response, and hopefully it (the plan)
will be realized in 2006," Hermansyah said.
Tarung derajat -- a martial art similar to kick boxing with
full body contact -- was established 33 years ago by GH Achmad
Dradjat in Bandung, West Java. It was recognized by the National
Sports Council in 1997 and became a medal sport at the 2004
National Games in Palembang.
Hermansyah was speaking at the announcement of the national
championships, to be held from Dec. 16-Dec. 19 in Jakarta.
He was accompanied by Kodrat's main coach Badai Meganegara,
who is the son of the sport's founder and the head of the
organizing committee for the nationals.
Badai, who has coached in Malaysia and Brunei, said
popularizing the sport outside the country required a joint focus
on the development and training of athletes.
He noted the sport's popularity at home, with 247 athletes
from 19 provinces competing in the nationals. Athletes will
compete in the men's and women's free and artistic categories.
In June, Badai told Kompas daily that Jakarta would be the hub
of development efforts for the sport, and added he had refused
offers to reside in Malaysia to coach "...because I don't want
the Malaysians to get better than us".
Pencak silat, the nation's other martial art, has become
popular in other parts of Asia and around the world. Vietnam,
whose program is handled by Indonesian coaches, now dominates the
sport.