Eighteen archers participated in the national selection program for the 11th ASEAN Para Games organized by the Indonesian National Paralympic Committee (NPC) in Surakarta City, Central Java Province, on Thursday.

The national selection program was conducted in the field of the Surakarta City Center for Social Rehabilitation of Physically Disabled People (BBRSPDF).

The international sporting event is scheduled to take place from July 30 to August 6, 2022.

The athletes chosen to join the national selection comprised the best male (10) and female (8) archers from the 2021 Papua National Paralympics Week (Peparnas).

The head coach of the Indonesian NPC’s archery team, Tri Sugeng Purwanto, informed that the participants will have to compete for the highest score at the national selections since only twelve of the best athletes— six men and six women—will be sent for the 11th ASEAN Para Games.

“If some athletes have the same score, they will be required to have another qualification round, thus only the best athletes will be selected,” he stated.

The selection will be strict since the Indonesian contingent is aiming to ace the final medal standings at the Para Games, he added.

The NPC is aiming for one gold medal and two silver medals in archery at the international sporting event, the head coach said. However, the team is expected to snatch more than one gold medal.

Six events of archery will be contested at the 11th ASEAN Para Games, namely men’s and women’s recurve numbers, men’s and women’s compound, as well as mixed doubles events, he informed.

A number of archers are expected to win medals at the events, such as Kholodin and Daniel Ugo in the men’s recurve event and Sri Hartati and Mahda Aulia in the women’s recurve event.

Walminah and Tuwariah are expected to prevail in the women’s compound event, and Ken Swagumilang in the men’s compound event.

“Thai athletes are the toughest competitors in the sports,” Purwanto added.

Fourteen sports will be competed at the 11th ASEAN Para Games—athletics, boccia, archery, judo, powerlifting, swimming, table tennis, tennis, chess, goalball, badminton, bicycle racing, cerebral palsy (CP) football, and sitting volleyball.

Source: Antara News