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www.globeasia.com“Each month,
I go to the Thousand Islands. I am a
beach bum and can’t be separated from the sea. My
home in South Sulawesi is only 50 meters from the
beach,” said Syafruddin, who was born in Makassar
on April 12, 1961.
He then jumped on a jet ski before throttling
away along with 29 other jet skiers, among them top
athletes Aero Sutan Aswar and his brother Aqsa, who
will both participate in the Asian Games.
Jet skiing is Syafruddin’s other hobby aside from
swimming. “Wow, our athletes are great! I had to
catch my breath to keep up with them,” he exclaimed
after jet skiing for about 90 minutes near Ponco
Island.
For three days every week, Syafruddin calls on
one sporting discipline or another, in his capacity as
chef de mission. Since the government appointed him
last December, he has lead the Indonesian contingent,
consisting of around 1,000 athletes and 500 officials,
in its preparation for the Asian Games, which will
take place in Jakarta and Palembang, South Sumatra,
between Aug. 18 and Sept. 2. The athletes will compete
for medals in 40 sporting disciplines.
“It’s a good momentum. After half a century,
Indonesia is hosting the Asian Games once again. It’s
a huge bet for the nation. We should at least be in the
top 10,” said the general, popularly known as Pak
Syaf.
Ever Onward With
Asian Games 2018
Nikkei AsiAN Review
Newsmaker
As the sun rose above the horizon, seen from a café in Pantai Mutiara, North Jakarta, three-star police general
syafruddin, stripped of all his official regalia, sat down with
GlobeAsia’s
Adi Prasetya
to discuss a wide range
of issues, primarily his role as chef de mission of the indonesian contingent during upcoming Asian Games.