Try Sutrisno to open first sports congress

JAKARTA (JP): Vice President Try Sutrisno is scheduled to open the first National Sports Congress and the National Coordinating Meeting on Youth Affairs and Sports, organized by the office of the state minister of youth affairs and sports in cooperation with the National Sports Council and the Ministry of Education and Culture.

Imam Suyudi, the assistant to the state minister and member of the organizing committee for the conference, said yesterday the conference will take place at Hotel Indonesia from Feb. 25 to Feb. 28.

The conference will discuss the possibility of Indonesia hosting the Asian Games in 2006 and the Olympics in 2008.

Imam said the sixth five-year state plan's targets are to win the overall title at the 19th SEA Games, slated for Oct. 11 to Oct. 19 here this year, improve the country's rankings at the Asian Games and win more gold medals at the Olympics.

The conference will also discuss the development of sports in the country since the beginning of the New Order.

"From the total of more than 30 sports organizations that we have, only the Badminton Association of Indonesia has its own way of earning its money for developing athletes. We'll make the organization our first priority at the conference," Imam said.

Imam said the government is helping the Indonesian Track and Field Association to build another synthetic-track stadium in Ragunan, South Jakarta to boost the sport's development.

"So far, Malaysia's athletes have always performed better. If we have more facilities with better equipment to groom our athletes, I believe the results will be better," he said.

Imam said the conference will also invite the Association of Indonesian Advertising Companies to find the best way of attracting more people to watch sport events.

Among those scheduled to participate in the conference will be experts, officials of each sports organization, the staff of 27 provinces' council branches and several universities. (yan)