Jakarta, May 24 2006.
ISCI to hold Jababeka Hockey Festival

Field hockey fans will have the opportunity to enjoy matches this weekend featuring national and international players, as part of the Jababeka Hockey Festival at the hockey grounds of the Bung Karno sports complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta.

The free-of-charge event will feature 11 foreign teams and four local teams. Among the foreign teams are four from Hong Kong, three from Malaysia and two from Singapore.

"We also have teams from Switzerland and China this year," tournament representative Chris Wren said Monday evening.

The local teams are Jakarta-based International Sports Club of Indonesia (ISCI), STEI and Nusantara, and Bandung-based Manada.

"Hockey is an international game that has become a favorite in many countries. We hope this event will attract many young Indonesians to play hockey and take part in competitions abroad," said the president director of the tournament's main sponsor PT Jababeka, S.D. Darmono.

As a curtain raiser, there will be a junior tournament, the Indonesia Youth Hockey Challenge, on Thursday and Friday.

"We support the young people as the foundation of the sport in the future," said Mike Gray of Rolls-Royce, which is sponsoring the junior tournament along with Hard Rock Cafe.

Francis Zimmerman, the general manager of Le Meridien Hotel Jakarta, which is also sponsoring the event, hoped the presence of foreign participants would help revive the tourist industry in the country.

Indonesian Hockey Association (PHSI) chairman Erizal Azhar said the event was aimed at promoting hockey among the people.

"For pro players, we plan to hold an inter-club hockey tournament in Medan ( North Sumatra) from July 24-30," he said.

Twenty-two of the PHSI's provincial chapters are invited to compete in the tournament.

Erizal added that the eight top teams in the inter-club tournament would secure places in next year's national league.

(JP/Damar Harsanto)

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