Timor Leste. The Komite Olahraga Nasional Indonesia (KONI) recently affirmed its commitment to regional sports development by helping lay the groundwork for the sport of petanque in neighbouring Timor‑Leste.
On 29 October 2025, KONI’s Chairman, Marciano Norman (Retired Lieutenant General), visited the campus of Universitas Negeri Surabaya (Unesa) in East Java to monitor a special training programme for Timor-Leste athletes and coaches.
He was accompanied by Deputy Chairman II of KONI Central, Major General (Ret.) Soedarmo, and the media & public relations director Martinez dos Santos, along with top officials from the East Java branch of KONI.
A Collaboration for Shared Success
Marciano Norman praised Unesa and the Federasi Olahraga Petanque Indonesia (FOPI), led by Rector Prof. Dr. Nurhasan and Deputy Rector IV Prof. Dr. Dwi Cahyo Kartiko, for opening their doors to support Timor-Leste’s petanque development.
He emphasised that sports know no borders: “With the spirit of unity, we do not distinguish sports-lovers by country,” he said. The collaboration is also an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations between Indonesia and Timor-Leste through sport.
Training & Equipment Support
The training programme began on 20 October 2025 at Unesa’s petanque facility. During the visit on 22 October, Unesa provided crucial training equipment: 7 sets of steel balls (“bosi”), 7 wooden balls (“boka”) and 2 marked circle units for the court. These materials will help current training and future use in Timor-Leste.
Unesa also offered scholarship opportunities to the Timor-Leste participants, reinforcing both sports and educational collaboration.
One of the coach-trainees, Antonio de Araujo — who also serves on the Executive Committee of Timor-Leste’s National Olympic Committee — expressed deep gratitude. He pledged to share the skills with all districts in his home country to fast-track the establishment of petanque there.
Indonesia–Timor-Leste Sports Diplomacy in Action
The collaboration builds on a formal partnership: on 30 August 2023, KONI and the Confederação do Desporto de Timor‑Leste (CDTL) signed an agreement committing to support each other’s sports development.
As Timor-Leste currently lacks a formal national petanque federation and a coaching infrastructure, the plan is to train 5-candidate athletes and 2-candidate coaches at Unesa as a first step toward building a homegrown programme.
Why This Matters
- Affordable access to sport: Petanque is relatively low-cost, making it accessible for many districts in Timor-Leste.
- Sustainable growth: Training coaches and athletes ensures long-term development, not just one-off support.
- Regional unity: This collaboration strengthens sporting ties and broader diplomatic goodwill in Southeast Asia.
- Role of education institutions: Unesa is functioning as a “home of champions” and a regional hub for petanque growth.
Comments