IBG Wiyana Is happy Vovinam succeed in SEA Games

Jakarta (UR): The Indonesia Vovinam chief expressed his relief that the Vietnamese martial art has finally debuted at the SEA Games.  “I’m happy that Vovinam is one of the competition sports. For me and Vietnam, it was not easy to convince the committee and the contestants to showcase the sport,” Ida Bagus Gede Wiyana, the president of Indonesia Vovinam, said.  The Vovinam competition concluded on Thursday.  Wiyana played a pivotal role in bringing Vovinam to the SEA Games. He said he even used his own money to send athletes to various international competitions.  He was also always present to monitor preparations for the competition at GOR Sunter Tanjung Priok in North Jakarta. Wiyana said he had to make sure for himself that the competition would run smoothly as he didn't want his efforts and hard work going to waste.  “I have taken it upon myself to make sure everything was well prepared. We assigned three judges from outside ASEAN to judge the competition to avoid bias during the event," he said.  Wiyana said his attempts to make Vovinam a competition sport at the SEA Games began two years ago when he lobbied KOI and regularly sent athletes to international competitions.  “The first time I proposed an international competition, I was told to do so with my own money. We had no other option. With good performance from our athletes and supports from other nations, we finally convinced Inasoc to include the sport," he said.  At the SEA Games, four countries – Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Indonesia – competed for 14 gold medals on offer in Vovinam.  “Vovinam is new to Indonesia, and also in most other countries. We are developing this sport and coaching athletes in Bali. All the athletes have a background in pencak silat," Wiyana said.     He said Indonesia had to be satisfied with five gold, a silver and eight bronze medals in the competition. “The Vovinam team reached the target set by KOI. However, it did not reach my personal expectation of six gold medals,” he said.  Wiyana said he was grateful the Vovinam competition had run smoothly and the teams were evenly matched. “We predicted that all medals in sparring would be grabbed by Vietnam, but Laos broke that streak,” he said.