Bandung, West Java (Antara) - Indonesia would not set a target of becoming an overall champion in the 27th Southeast Asian Games 2013 in Mynamar next month, sports minister Roy Suryo said.
"It would be difficult for Indonesia to become an overall champion due to a big number of additional sport branches to be competed in the event," he said when opening The Gading Open 2013 FEI Jumping World Cup final round of the Southeast Asia League equestrian championship in Parompong, Bandung, West Java, here on Sunday.
Roy Suryo said "we only set a target of winning 120 medals at the SEA Games in Myanmar."
He said it was obvious Indonesia would not be able to win medals in several additional branches to be played at the games.
He said some of the sports were not familiar in Indonesia such as "petangue", "vovinam" and other Myanmarese traditional sports that would certainly give an advantage to Myanmar.
"Moreover in the chess event. There are many Myanmarese traditional chess events that would be competed that our athletes have not yet mastered well," he said.
Regarding equestrian he said he believed Indonesia would win medals from the individual events although "it is not impossible it will also be able to get a gold medal from the team event."
Regarding the horses to be used in the event Roy Suryo said he could understand that horses to be used must be the ones provided by Myanmar.
"Due to a quarantine problem athletes will not be allowed to bring their own horses from Indonesia. But we could understand it," he said. (*)
COPYRIGHT © ANTARA News Jawa Timur 2013
COPYRIGHT © ANTARA News Jawa Timur 2013