WI looking for more wushu hopefuls for 2003 SEA Games
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After listing 24 tau lo athletes from a tournament that just wrapped up, the Indonesian Wushu Association (WI) is seeking 16 san shou nominees to send to the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
The tau lo division involves athletes who have skills in using a specific weapon, while the san shou is an unarmed fight between two athletes.
The san shou hopefuls are expected to be picked from the next qualifying field, which will be held in Surabaya, East Java, from May 31 to June 1. The tau lo list was drawn up after the May 15 to May 17 tournament in Jakarta.
"We are going to pick 12 men and four women from the (Surabaya) tournament. Those picks will be eligible to continue their training along with their tau lo compatriots," WI chairman Mediteransyah told reporters here on Monday.
Mediteransyah had earlier met with Agum Gumelar, the chairman of the National Sports Council (KONI), to report on the sports council of the Surabaya tournament.
The Surabaya tournament will feature 83 athletes from 10 provinces. The participants have been short-listed from the 2002 national championship.
"The top six finishers and top two juniors at the (2002) championship will qualify for the Surabaya tournament," Mediteransyah said.
The next SEA Games will be staged in Hanoi, Vietnam, in December.
While the official commencement of the national training was on May 1, the wushu association, according to Mediteransyah, had already started their training as early as in February in the athletes' respective provinces.
The association plans to send 12 men and 12 women in the tau lo division and six men and two women in the san shou division to the SEA Games.
The fixed lineup of the squad is expected to play at the September National Championships in Jakarta, which will also be used as the qualifying field for the following national multi- event sports championship (PON) in Palembang, South Sumatra, next year.
The World Wushu Championship in Macau in November seems to be the only tournament where the Indonesian wushu fighters plan to use as a skill-testing venue prior to their Vietnam departure.
About the medal prospects in Vietnam, Mediteransyah said the association had not pressured the athletes with a target.
"However, we're eager to maintain our achievement of two golds and five silvers, which we took from the 2001 games in Kuala Lumpur," he said. The wushu competition in Vietnam has 28 gold medals on offer to athletes.