Why is PON a turnoff?

Why is PON a turnoff?

From Merdeka

What is happening to the public? It is as if people have lost
interest in what is happening around them, except if a student
riot has erupted somewhere. There is even no interest in the on-
going National Games, PON, currently being held in Jakarta.

The papers and electronic media are reporting poor attendances
this year. Only athletes and their friends are filling the seats,
giving rousing support to those in the sporting arenas.

It is such a pity. How can sports become popular if people do
not even like to watch them? Then, is it reasonable to expect
victory on the regional and international scene? Will sport in
Indonesia become as advanced as in other countries if people show
no interest at all in national sports events? Or is it because of
the poor performances of the athletes?

Come to think of it, what is there really to be proud of apart
from badminton. Let us start with football (it only incites
fights on the field), boxing (it lost its glamor after Syamsul
Anwar and Ellyas Pical faded away), bridge (we were good at it
once), tennis (no replacement for Yayuk Basuki yet), swimming
(we are losing out here too), basketball (still in the embryonic
stage of development) and so on.

And athletes who achieve international recognition in weight
lifting and chess are not as fortunate as badminton players, who
are showered with money and gifts. There are ex-weight lifters
and chess players of international fame who ended their sporting
careers destitute.

Given this situation, the government, and KONI (the National
Sports Council) in particular, should look into the question of
why PON has not grabbed the public's imagination this year and
why our athletes' performances are increasingly on the wane. We
have to bear in mind that the success of a nation is also
reflected in its sporting achievements.

As an important member of ASEAN, we should not be an under-dog
in the sports arena.

YAN SUGIYANTO

Jakarta