Classic Reasons Behind Not Departing 15 Sports To SEA Games Hanoi

A total of 15 sports were not dispatched to the 2021 SEA Games. (VOI/Cosmas Kopong Beda)

JAKARTA – As many as 15 sports, including women's soccer, will not be included in the 2021 Hanoi SEA Games. These sports must be absent from the event because they are considered to have no track record of achievement and organizational problems.

The announcement of the Indonesian contingent was held at the Auditorium of the Ministry of Youth and Sports (Kemenpora), Jakarta, on Wednesday, March 30. Women's soccer along with 14 other sports did not participate in the biennial event.

"Indonesia does not participate in the 15 sports and sub-sports of the Hanoi SEA Games because it does not have a track record of achievement, does not have a chance (to get) a medal, and has organizational problems," said the Head of the Review Team, Mochamad Asmawi, to reporters.

Apart from women's soccer, the 14 other sports that are not flown to Vietnam are indoor handball, beach handball, dance, petanque, kurash, futsal, billiards, table tennis, muay thai, xiangqi, diving, rhythmic gymnastics, aerobics, and bodybuilding.

For Hanoi later, Indonesia will send 476 athletes to the two-year event from 32 sports. That number is almost half less than the contingent that departed for the 2019 Philippines SEA Games.

The athlete's efficiency of 43.4 percent has the potential to reduce the gold medal for the Indonesian contingent. It is estimated that at least 30 gold medals will be lost compared to the gains obtained in the Philippines last year.

In addition to cutting the number of athletes, the government also prioritizes young athletes for Hanoi. Of the total athletes who departed, 60 percent were young athletes and the rest were senior athletes.

Menpora Zainudin Amali said that the efficiency of the athletes was carried out by considering the budget. The budget from the government is not sufficient because currently, the focus of the allocation is handling the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We really make it fair. We make it objective. If we leave, the results are adequate and the reason is strong, but if we don't go, the reason is also strong. So, nothing is made up, nothing is fabricated and we from the Ministry of Youth and Sports only facilitate, said Amali.

The 2021 SEA Games which will take place on May 12-23 will not only be held in Hanoi, but also in other cities in the country. This two-year multi-branch event will compete in 40 sports and compete in 526 numbers.