A Long Way to Chase a Dream
One of the parents was Firda (46) and her husband, Dehendrian (48), from Bengkulu City. They took their only child, Alfi Zahrin (13), to join the selection. Alfi has been practicing archery since 2020.
The children were selected on the second day of the National Sports Great Design Development Center at the State University of Jakarta, Thursday (14/7/2022).
Hundreds of teenagers from outside Java have to come to Jakarta to participate in the selection to become young athletes. They have to travel hundreds of kilometers to pursue their dreams of becoming national athletes.
On the 150-square meter terrace in one of the Jakarta State University (UNJ) buildings on Wednesday (13/7/2022), dozens of mothers and fathers waited anxiously. Some peeked through the glass doors and some sat and discussed the process their children were going through.
They were parents who came from a number of regions located hundreds to thousands of kilometers from Jakarta. They took their children to pursue their dream of becoming a national athlete. The children aged between 12 and 14 years old were undergoing a selection process for prospective athletes at the 2022 National Potential Young Athlete Training Center established as part of the implementation of the National Sports Grand Design (DBON).
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One of the parents was Firda (46) and her husband, Dehendrian (48), from Bengkulu City. They took their only child, Alfi Zahrin (13), to join the selection. Alfi has been practicing archery since 2020.
“Alfi often participates in elementary school championships in Bengkulu and often wins. He wants to be an athlete and wants to take part in a championship outside the region," said Firda.
Luckily, in the middle of the Sumatran highway, they received news that Alfi had passed the initial selection.
In order to realize Alfi's dream, they advised Alfi to register for the DBON center selection, which opened from July 3-10. On Monday (11/7), before the result of the initial test was announced, the three of them had left for Jakarta for further selection that was held between 13 and 15 July. Luckily, in the middle of the Sumatran highway, they received news that Alfi had passed the initial selection.
The children were selected on the second day of the National Sports Great Design Development Center at the State University of Jakarta, Thursday (14/7/2022).
"If we had waited for the announcement on Tuesday (12/7), we wouldn't have had time to get to Jakarta for Wednesday. So, we decided to go regardless of the results of the initial selection," said Firda.
Full of struggle
Firda said with limited finances, they could not afford buying a Bengkulu-Jakarta flight ticket worth Rp. 1.5 million (US$103) per person. Therefore, they took the bus which was much cheaper, costing only Rp 450,000 per person.
They traveled the 814 km in 24 hours, passing through the winding middle route of Sumatra.
Arriving in Jakarta, they stayed in a boarding room for Rp 200,000 per night near UNJ. "Because the test takes a long time [three days if all tests are passed], we have to be frugal," said Firda.
The struggle was also shown by the group of the secretary of the All-Indonesian Rock Climbing Federation (FPTI) of Jambi City, Kornelius Sitindaon (33). Kornelius brought two of his trainees, Febrina Rizki (13) and Firzi Anugerah Pratama (14).
Since beginning to practice three years ago, Febrina and Firzi have shown a great potential. However, both of them are from low-income families. The FPTI branch in Jambi City had asked the local government for help, but there was no response.
In order to realize the dream of Febrina and Firzi to become national athletes, the Jambi FPTI branch bore their expenses to take part in the selection to Jakarta.
"We try to help because they have talent and achievements," said Cornelius.
The three took a bus to Jakarta about 800 km away at a cost of Rp 500,000 per person. In the capital, they stayed at the Secretariat of the UNJ’s Nature Lovers Eka Citra. "Because we don't know the location of the test, it's safe for us to stay at the Eka Citra Secretariat," said Kornelius.
Of the total, 209 teenage athletes participated in the selection at UNJ.
As many as 799 young athletes who had just graduated from elementary school participated in the selection of DBON centers in four locations, namely UNJ, the Indonesian Education University in Bandung, Semarang State University and Surabaya State University. Of the total, 209 teenage athletes participated in the selection at UNJ.
Most of the participants were from Sumatra, Kalimantan and Sulawesi. There remains a gap in athlete coaching programs in the regions.
Rifda Arafah (39), the mother of a child climber from Bengkulu, Ranu Artha Annapurna (13), said that in her hometown, there was no coaching platform for athletes who had graduated from elementary school. The youngest level is at the high school level, Bengkulu Sports Talent School (SKO).
The children were selected on the second day of the National Sports Great Design Development Center at the State University of Jakarta, Thursday (14/7/2022).
However, the facilities and human resources for the training are inadequate. The competition is also limited.
“We are not looking for the scholarships or school fees promised by the DBON center. We are pursuing a higher quality training program for Ranu. If he continues to train there [in Benkulu], Ranu will have no progress," said Rifda.
The chairman of the Expert Team for Law No. 11/2022 and DBON as well as the chairman of the Review Team for National Sports Achievement Improvement (PPON) of the Youth and Sports Ministry, Moch Asmawi, said on Friday (22/7) that there were 112 athletes who were accepted to join the first batch of the DBON training program.
They will stay in the dormitory beginning on Wednesday (27/7). All of them will wade through a long-term program with a touch of sport science.
The children enthusiastically followed the directions for the selection of the second day of the National Sports Great Design development center at the State University of Jakarta, Thursday (14/7/2022).
The DBON program is the government's efforts in coping with the gap in the sports coaching chain. With better facilities, they will be trained to become the world-class athletes of the future.
(This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi)
