Adventurers invited to join cross-country competition

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 05/02/2008 1:33 PM  |  Sports

Local adventurers will get the chance to test their physical toughness during an event called Djarum Super Adventurace to be held in August in a mountainous area in West Java.

Djarum project officer Robby Hidayat said Thursday participants could fill in application forms from May 2 to June 30.

"We expect 300,000 applicants but we will only invite 50 (qualified) candidates to Jakarta for a preliminary phase," he said Thursday.

He said selected applicants would undergo physical tests as well as interviews to gauge their knowledge about sports.

"Of a total 50 people, we will pick 30 competitors and divide them into 10 teams," he said.

The teams will battle in the Aug. 3-4 event, which will incorporate motorbiking, cross-country running, rock climbing, canoeing and mountain biking.

The top three teams will advance to the final on Aug. 8-9 in which the nine contenders will compete individually in those five disciplines plus a one-kilometer lake swim.

"The best nine adventurers will be tested for their endurance in those (five) areas as well as swimming," he said.

He said the organizer could not yet reveal the competition site to ensure fairness among competitors.

"I am afraid they could start exercising at the site if we were to disclose the name of the place," he said.

He was optimistic the competition would attract a lot of young people eager to test themselves in the various disciplines.

"We have opened (registration) counters in some malls around Java and Sumatra. People can just fill in the forms and let the malls send in the forms," he said.

Djarum's national promotions manager, Arpian, said people outside Java and Sumatra could participate in the event by registering by regular mail or email.

"We hope there will be a lot of people taking part in the event due to its flexible registration," he said.

He said the number of applicants would be the benchmark for deciding whether the same event would be held again next year. (ewd)

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