“They are the result of good talent scouting conducted by Perbakin (Indonesian Shooting Association), and they are still young,” Norman remarked after awarding medals to three young shooting athletes at the Kampung Harapan Indoor Shooting Range, Sentani, Jayapura District,on Tuesday.
The athletes are Audrey Zahra from West Java, Diaz Kusumawardani from East Java, and Gisella Lasut from North Sulawesi. Zahra is a gold medalist in the women's 10-meter Air Rifle event at the Papua PON this year, while Kusumawardani and Lasut respectively won silver and bronze.
Zahra is a national-level shooting athlete, who has competed in several Asia-level and world-level events despite being 17 years of age. One of her achievements is winning a bronze in an international championship held in New Delhi, India, earlier this year.
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Norman expressed pride over the presence of those young champions and is optimistic that the sport of shooting in Indonesia would continue to develop through sustained regeneration and coaching.
“What makes me proud is that the winners are still very young,” he remarked.
Norman believes that shooting sports will have a bright future in Indonesia, with the presence of outstanding young athletes.
"We are optimistic that shooting will become one of our flagship sports," he affirmed.
The XX Papua National Sports Week (PON) 2021 was officially opened by President Joko Widodo on October 2, and will take place until October 15. At least 6,400 athletes and 3,500 officials from 34 provinces across Indonesia participate in the National Games that feature as many as 37 events.
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Translator: Dadan Ramdani, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
