BEACH BIKING: Chinese athlete Xue Li heads the pack in the cycling leg of the women’s triathlon at the Asian Beach Games in Bali. (JP/Bara Muskita)

The true competitiveness of the inaugural Asian Beach Games that Bali hosted in October might have been doubted, but the event certainly gave Indonesia plenty to savor, not least its impressive medal haul.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), under the leadership of Kuwaiti Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, awarded Bali the right to host the first-ever beach games in a bid to help re-energize the island's tourism image, so devastated by the bombing incidents in 2002 and 2005.

It is in the spirit of the games movement that the Asian Beach Games has been mooted as a campaign that promotes both sport and tourism at the same time.

This was the second time Indonesia hosted an Asia-level multi-event showcase since the Asian Games in Jakarta in 1962.

The Bali Beach Games, which ran from Oct. 18-26, featured 17 beach-related sports, including the very popular beach volleyball and surfing, as well as the Indonesian traditional martial art pencak silat and wrestling.

Beach basketball and water polo exhibition contests were also held.

The organization absorbed expenses of about Rp 210 billion (US$17.5 million). The government injected Rp 105 billion, channeled through the welfare ministry (Rp 90 billion) and the State Ministry of Youth and Sports Affairs (Rp 15 billion). The rest was covered through sponsorship.

The games' torch relay began on Oct. 8. Its starting point was at Mrapen, Central Java, where prominent Indonesian sprinter Suryo Agung Wibowo had the honor of lighting the torch from the natural eternal flame.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono officially opened the games on Oct. 18 in a spectacular ceremony at Garuda Wisnu Kencana in Nusa Dua, Badung, which showcased prominent regional performers and was attended by several important guests, including members of the British and Qatari royal families.

Asian singers Filipino idol Christian Bautista, Indian Mark Lazaro and Indonesian singer-songwriter Andre Hehanusa lit up stage along with Indonesian diva Reza Artamevira.

The games' motto, "Inspire the World", became the official anthem. A total 1,700 dancers joined the performance choreographed by renowned dancers Sentot Sudiarto and Boi G. Sakti. Well-known composer Erwin Gutawa roused emotions with his beautiful music.

Competing for the total 65 gold medals were some 4,000 athletes and officials from 41 of the 45 Asian countries (Yemen, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Iraq opted out).

The battleground was spread over three clusters: Sanur, Serangan/Kuta and Nusa Dua.

Indonesia, which fielded 214 athletes, the second-largest number after Thailand's 260, emerged the overall champion by collecting 23 gold, eight silver and 20 bronze medals.

The achievement came at the expense of Asian sporting powerhouses, China, Japan and South Korea.

China bagged six golds, 10 silvers and seven bronzes to end up in third place behind Thailand (10-17-10).

Although many countries did not come out in full force, the host's achievement nevertheless gave its contingent a sense of jubilation -- not to mention caution on how to defend this record in two years.

"The result shows that we do have strength in international sports. But I would suggest all athletes remain humble and don't get overly complacent with their achievements. We still have many upcoming events to prepare for," said contingent chief Djoko Pramono, a retired Navy general who led Indonesia's squad to the Southeast Asian Games in 1997, 2003 and 2005.

Paragliding and pencak silat yielded the most medals for Indonesia, with 11 and seven, respectively.

Indonesian gliders collected seven of the eight golds on offer, an achievement that surpassed expectations. Team manager Gendon Subandono said his team had stunned more fancied athletes from Korea, China and Japan.

Korea managed to hang on to the last gold.

In the pencak silat, the host grabbed five gold medals, one each in the men's singles, men's doubles, women's singles, women's doubles and women's fight.

In the beach volleyball competition, regularly attended by spectators in large numbers, Indonesia shared the honor with Thailand, with the home side triumphing in the men's division, courtesy of Andy Ardiansyah and Koko Prasetyo Darkuncoro.

In other fields, the home side was beaten.

The Indonesian sepak takraw team managed to snatch only a silver and two bronzes, while Maxmillian Manurung came third in the men's 10-kilometer marathon swim, where East and West Asian athletes dominated.

The medal winners were also rewarded with cash bonuses ranging from between Rp 25 million and Rp 100 million.

While its domination may be put to the test in the next Asian Beach Games in Oman in 2010, Indonesia deserves to take a moment to savor the legacy from being the first host of the event.

The OCA decided to use Mrapen as the official flame source for every beach games torch relay, as Bali Asian Beach Games Organizing Committee director Rita Subowo said, "Every host will take the flame from Indonesia for their torch relay."

The decision means that every two years Indonesia will be guaranteed a place in the media spotlight when the torch relay kicks off a beach games.

The event may be at an Asian level only, but it took Bali and Indonesia further from a sporting perspective with representatives from four cities -- Chicago (United States), Madrid (Spain), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) and Tokyo (Japan) -- bidding for the 2016 Olympics making a stopover to raise support from the Asian assembly, attended by IOC president Jacques Rogge.

Al Sabah, who chaired the assembly, said he looked forward to making the beach games a prestigious event in Asia in addition to the Asian Games, Asian Winter Games and Asian Indoor Games.

"The opening ceremony was held at an historical site and these games are historical for Asia," he said. "This is an achievement and Indonesia deserves accolade."

The beach games obviously gave Indonesia some solace for its dismal performance in other multisports events, whether the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games or Asian Games.

Indonesia used to dominate the SEA Games before it began to nosedive in 1999, with it falling in 2007 to fourth place among the 11 nations in the region.

In the Asian Games, Indonesia's failure to collect more than two gold medals put it among the minnows in the region, and left it languishing in the shadow of the 1962 Asian Games when Indonesia, the host, came in second.

In future Asian Beach Games, the challenge for Indonesia is to step up and prove its Bali run was not just a fluke.

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