Where are our sports champions?

The country marks National Sports Day on Sunday as most of its best athletes compete in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Kuala Lumpur. Indonesia has consistently done well in the Games, but it is still struggling to produce international caliber champions. The Jakarta Post's Ivy Susanti looks at what must be done to put sports development on target.

JAKARTA (JP): It's a disturbing question that comes up again and again whenever one takes a long, hard look at the state of Indonesian sports.

Why has no internationally acknowledged great sportsmen or sportswomen ever emerged from a country with a population of 210 million people?

If we look on the streets, the "prospective champions" are there, playing soccer, badminton and volleyball.

But, somehow, in the sports system, they fall through the cracks, except in the traditional Indonesian mainstay of badminton or exceptions like the talented Yayuk Basuki, a top tennis player in the 1990s.

As a country, Indonesia is no longer even the sports champion of the region. From its debut in the SEA Games in 1977, Indonesia consistently was overall medal champion, but it has slipped in the last few years.

It was dealt its biggest blow in 1999 in Brunei, when it was third in the medal table behind Thailand and Malaysia.

Sports official Mangombar Ferdinand Siregar and sports observer Fritz E. Simandjuntak said the problem was the lack of cooperation between those who are involved in developing sports: the government, the sports organizations, clubs and schools. Moreover, all of them seem to lack vision toward a long-term goal of making sports a potential career choice.

Of course, it takes money to produce a champion, and many sports organizations cry poverty in their efforts to groom champions, particularly after the crisis struck in mid-1997. They usually appoint powerful military figures or businesspeople as patrons in their fund-raising efforts, although some critics say the involvement of non-sports professionals in the running of the organizations is one of the problems with the system.

Some athletes, like Wimbledon junior girl's champion Angelique Wijaya, received full financial support from their parents. Others, such as Angelique's fellow tennis players Wynne Prakusya and Yayuk at the outset of her career, have been sponsored by businesspeople.

But Siregar argued that money was not really the main problem in Indonesia's poor sports development.

"Why should they (the sports officials) always talk about financial shortages? Because they can't make the sport a profession! The sports organization's duty is to produce achievements which can be sold, not only to hold meetings.

"In Europe and the U.S., sports organization are self- supporting because they can sell the athlete's achievements. Here, sports organization always cry about money without showing any significant achievements. This attitude is like a mental disease."

The 72-year-old former coach and assistant to the office of the state minister of youth affairs and sports said that sports officials could learn from other countries how to manage a sport so it can have a selling value.

"We need a new vision. The vision must be shared by everyone involved in sports development," he said.

Fritz, also the National Sports Council (KONI) head of sports business and industry, shared Siregar's opinion, but also showed concern for the athletes' long-term welfare.

"It's time for sports to be a medium for athletes to move into higher mobility, which means to improve their standard of living. Indonesian sports, whether they are professional or not, must be able to provide alternatives for all the actors in the sports community to be able to move higher," he said in a telephone interview.

He said some sports still could not manage to provide athletes the tools they needed to improve their lives because they did not have a vision and a mission.

"Sports organizations must have the vision to improve the welfare of the athletes and the people who are involved in sports. If the sports officials have it, they will focus their programs in that direction and do whatever they can to fulfill that. They may improve their management and think of how to stage a profitable competition where everybody gets a share and their athletes can get money, become celebrities and be wanted by world sport organizations," said Fritz.

He said the vision must be launched as a national movement started by the government.

"The government should make policies that support the movement. For example, the government can ask top schools to admit 10 percent of national athletes in the new semester. It can also ask state enterprises to accept 1 percent to 10 percent of the athletes at their companies."

"Clubs are the spearhead for sports development. They must yield achievements so the sports can attract investors. If the clubs do not have money, they must concentrate on how to provide a good training program for the athletes, and let their sports organization hold the competition. If they can sell the athletes, they can attract sponsors."

Siregar said that sports development must begin early, in kindergarten and elementary school.

"The challenge is how to introduce sports through physical education in a play atmosphere in line with the child's intellectual and physical development. After that, they will find sports indispensable in their life," he said.

"The government and society must facilitate this condition, so they can contribute to physical education. Parents must also exercise with their children. What's the use of physical education in schools without parental support?" he said.

Siregar also said sports should reach out to the villages. "Get out there with a new vision! National Sports Day is not only celebrations in big cities but must also include villagers."

The country could also look to its neighbors.

Thailand and Malaysia both have developed long-term training projects. In Thailand, the government does not provide large amounts of financial support but it attracts children to sports with extensive facilities, as well as scholarships and a small allowance to cover expenses.

It also has a special research center, the Thai Athletes Evaluation Committee (TEAC), devoted to sports development.

Malaysia launched the Gemilang Project to groom young athletes in 1998, with the aim of finishing first in the Games on home soil this year.

Professionals

Creating champions can also only come about by making all- around professionals who can also compete outside of the sports arena, experts say.

Although some Olympic gold medalists like Susi Susanti, Alan Budikusuma, Ricky Subagja, Rexy Mainaky, Candra and Tony Gunawan from badminton do not have to worry much because of the huge bonuses they received for their achievements, others are not so lucky.

Some athletes, especially those from low-income families, find it difficult to deal with the pressures of money and fame. Others find themselves struggling to survive once their glory days are over and they can no longer rely on their sports organizations.

In February, national boxer La Paene Masara turned to professional boxing after the Indonesian Amateur Boxing Association (Pertina) failed to provide him with a job.

In a dialog aired by RCTI private television station prior to the Indonesian's contingent departure to Kuala Lumpur, senior men's pencak silat fighter and former world champion Abas Akbar reiterated the call for the government and sports authorities to provide the athletes with training and jobs rather than bonuses.

"Don't give us the fish but the hook. We're glad to receive bonuses and cash for the medals we win, but the most important thing is to give us jobs, and also training and education, so we can keep on training without any worry about our future.

"We are not only looking for bonuses by being an athlete, but we give what we can for the nation in the sports arena," said Abas.