I

ndonesian athletes failed in three finals in the petanque events, but the young athletes learned a lesson from the sport, which they have played for only five months: They can beat more experienced players.

Indonesian talent put up a laudable performance in the six days of preliminary and final rounds during the Games.

Ahmad Kalui beat Michael Corporal of the Philippines 13-8 in the men’s singles qualifiers although he later lost 2-13 to Safwan of Malaysia in the finals.

Ahmad’s compatriot Tiya Mariana-Dwi Anjani edged Nurul Farzieana-Nusyazwani of Malaysia 13-10 and extended her run by beating Duong Dina-Oum Chantrea of Cambodia 13-8 in the women’s doubles preliminary rounds until being stopped by Vu Thi Thu-Nguyen Thi Trang of Vietnam in the finals, 10-13.

“We’ve played the sport for five months while other teams like Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam have been playing petanque for more than 20 years,” Indonesian team manager Arifin Thahir told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

“It is good to beat players from the Philippines, Cambodia and Malaysia. I wonder how it would have been if we had trained for much longer. I think we’d have had a chance at gold,” he added, citing Malaysia, which has played the sport since 2001.

Thailand, the strongest petanque squad in Southeast Asia, saw great potential in the Indonesian women players during competition.

“The Indonesian women athletes played very well. They beat the Philippines and Malaysia.

“The sport requires concentration. If Indonesia hosts more competitions and gives these players more time to train, the country has a real future in petanque,” said Thai coach Ruejumon Vidhaidist on the sidelines of the men’s shooting finals at the Jakabaring Sports Complex.

Petanque originates from France. The aim is to throw metal balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball while standing inside a starting circle with both feet on the ground. The game is normally played on a hard, gravel surface but can also be played on grass, sand or other surfaces.

In an effort to advance petanque, which is categorized as a concentration sport, in Indonesia, Arifin and his squad are scheduled to promote the sport in several cities in Sumatra.

“As a start, we will visit Jambi and Lampung. In Palembang, we already have about 10 petanque clubs and a competition once a month to keep the sport alive in the city,” he added.

As part of the nation’s strategy to help boost the medal tally in the Games, two teams of men and women were formed and trained in Palembang, with the country yet to establish a petanque federation.

Each team, consisting of four personnel, trained for a month and a half in Thailand before having further
intensive training in Palembang.

“To play the sport, you only require a plot of land, 4 meters by 15 meters, covered with sand and gravel and a set of three balls.

“A set of balls is priced at Rp 1.5 million [US$116.5], but we still don’t have the vendors here,” explained Arifin, head of the Jakarta branch of the Indonesian Table Tennis Association (PTMSI).