"We all feel relieved and satisfied that in the midst of the President's busy schedule, he took the time to be present at the end of the 16th Peparnas in Papua," Chairman of NPC Senny Marbun remarked at the closing ceremony of Peparnas Papua.
Marbun and his team said they were very proud of the Peparnas Papua, adding they believed that all Papuans can celebrate its success.
Marbun also praised Widodo for his attention to disabled athletes in the country.
"Only him who is courageous to connect us with our non-disabled athletes," he remarked.
Peparnas Papua, which is held once in four years, became a new hope for Indonesia to further improve sports achievements on the international stage, he said.
Many records were broken in the 16th Peparnas, he informed.
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Based on data from the organizers, 96 athletes broke records in Peparnas' athletics, he said. Meanwhile, 39 national records were broken in swimming, he added.
Swimming athlete Chandra S. Simanjuntak from North Sumatra even broke the ASEAN Paralympic games record by finishing men's 100 meters backstroke S11 in 1 minute and 31.62 seconds, he pointed out.
Meanwhile, the powerlifting branch logged 13 record-breakers, he noted.
"Many records were broken, and many tears shed. They have achieved the goal. There were also some pent-up emotions because they did not reach the target," Marbun expounded.
All the events became one series that colored all the competitions that the athletes went through together, he said.
"It is time for us to reflect so that in the future, we can help spur victories to make the country proud," he added.
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Translator: M Ramdan, Kenzu T
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
