The only way is up after sad SEA Games showing

The only way is up after sad SEA Games showing

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 held in 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), 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 was
little 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 -- from the 22 events it participated in out of the 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
Sport 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.

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.

Susilo added the government could not be expected to go it
alone in organizing and funding sports events when dealing with
poverty remained a major issue.

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 law states those entitled to rewards range from athletes,
sports organizations and others involved in sports; parties
providing them can be the central or regional government, sports
organizations, nonsports organizations and/or individuals.

Entitlements range from "facilitation" for the outstanding
athlete, scholarships, insurance, employment, promotions,
honorary awards, citizenship, a pension fund, welfare and other
benefits.

However, a presidential instruction is required to flesh out
the details of the reward system, and the office of the sports
ministry conducted a familiarization tour to introduce the law in
major cities in December.

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.