The only way is up after sad SEA Games debacle

Bruce Emond, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

National sports received a much-needed boost this year when, after eight years of languishing in the legislature, the bill on sports was finally passed into law in September.

The sports law -- first mooted when the Office of the State Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs was set up in 1983 -- was hailed as a start in improving the nation's declining sports fortunes, especially with the lack of attention in previous administrations.

Yet, as if to underscore the depths to which national sports have sunk and the great work that needs to be done, the performance of Indonesia at the 23rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games two months later was a disaster.

The last time the Games were hosted by the Philippines in 1991, Indonesia held off the host country to triumph. This time, it lost handily to the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.

Finishing fifth in the overall gold medal standings was a huge, embarassing comedown for Indonesia, a nine-time winner of the regional multisport championships since it made its debut in 1977.

There were a few standouts at the Games, especially karate (five golds), pencak silat (five golds) canoeing (four golds), cycling (four golds), tennis (three golds), bowling (three golds) and, of course, badminton (taking four of the six golds on offer). Otherwise, there wasn't much to cheer about in the Philippines.

Most disappointing of all was athletics, with Indonesia only able to secure one gold -- from Oliva Sadi in the women's 5,000 meters on the final day of competition -- from the 22 events it participated in out of 45 track and field golds available.

Officials from the National Sports Council (KONI) were quick to state that the public should not "go berserk" over the disappointing showing. They also promised a full inquiry into the Games' performance.

The commonly heard reasons -- budget constraints, substandard coaching, a lack of government commitment, poor talent-scouting programs, especially for children aged six years to 12, the public disinterest in a sports career with no guarantee of future welfare -- were bandied about as explanation.

KONI also promised an expansion of the elite Indonesia Awakens training program from the current 11 sports to more "traditionally run" disciplines. State Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs Adhyaksa Dault also announced there would be special monitoring of athletes in training for the 2006 Asian Games in Doha in December.

"We must restore our confidence to lift ourselves out of this decline. There shouldn't be the words despair or (the feeling of) humiliation," KONI chief Agum Gumelar said upon his return from the Games.

In world arenas, Indonesia could still fall back on badminton and boxing to salvage some prestige in 2005.

Badminton players took two world titles -- in men's singles from Taufik Hidayat and mixed doubles from Nova Widianto and Lilyana Natsir -- in August, and the country was runner-up in the Sudirman Cup mixed team competition in May.

In boxing, World Boxing Association flyweight champion Chris John beat American veteran Derrick Gainer in Jakarta to hold on to his title amid an acrimonious split with his trainer. International Boxing Federation miniflyweight champion Muhammad Rachman also defended his crown in April in Papua.

In powerlifting, Lampung's Sutrisno set a new world record, won three gold medals and was named lifter of the championships at the powerlifting worlds in Miami in November.

The national soccer team, now under English coach Peter Withe, the architect of Thailand's resurgence in the game, started the year off promisingly by reaching the final of the Tiger Cup. However, in the SEA Games, Indonesia fell once again to perennial champion Thailand in the last four.

In January, Vision Asia -- the project of the Asian Football Confederation for more professional handling of the game in the region -- will begin as a pilot project in Bandung and Yogyakarta. It will be interesting to see its effectiveness, particularly after the problems in this year's Indonesian League.

From the low of the SEA Games, the hope is that Indonesian sports will be able to recover to the days when it was a force to be reckoned with in the region.

It's a wish also stated by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has declared his love of sports and ordered an explanation from KONI about the SEA Games failure.

With the new sports law only three days old on Sept. 9, Susilo called on all elements of society on National Sports Day to pitch in to achieve sporting success.

"The key for sports progression and performance is to love sports," he said.

The new law, consisting of 24 chapters with 92 articles, covers sports institutions, funding, sports management, the government's and public's share of responsibility in sports activities as well as doping and its punishment.

Article 86 on entitlements for outstanding achievement has gained particular attention, especially with the arrest and conviction of jobless former world boxing champion Ellyas Pical earlier this year for drug dealing and stories of other former national athletes eking out a living.

The advent of the sports law and the SEA Games disaster, each in its own way, should be used as the impetus for drastic change in how national sports are run, especially in creating a more professional, streamlined and efficient system.

There are 12 months before the Asiad, and national sports officals have their work cut out for them as Indonesian athletes start the long, hard climb back.

The system is broke, and now's the time to fix it.