A singer performs during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Asian Games at the Gelora Bung Karno main stadium in Jakarta on Aug. 18, 2018. (AFP/Jewel Samad)
I
ndonesia, a minnow in the world of Olympic sports, is maintaining its shooting-for-the-stars mentality as it keeps its Olympics host hopes alive, with the help of tourism.
Over the past decade, the country, which drew global attention after successfully hosting the 2018 Asian Games, the second-largest multisport event after the Olympics, has found firmer ground in focusing on the strategy.
Sports tourism has a wide-ranging market and Indonesia has the potential to grow to a value of Rp 18.79 trillion (US$1.2 billion) by 2024, according to Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno.
The 2018 Asiad played a significant role in catching everyone’s attention, a benefit for Indonesia which has formally bid to host the 2036 Summer Olympics in unbuilt new capital Nusantara, as announced by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo during November’s Group of 20 Summit in Bali.
And for 2023 alone, Indonesia will have a packed schedule of hosting the 23rd FIFA World Cup Under-20s (May-June) soccer tournament in six cities, the second Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) World Beach Games (August) multisport event in Bali, the 19th FIBA World Cup basketball tournament (August-September) in Jakarta and ongoing MotoGP Indonesia races (October) in Mandalika, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), among other competitions.
All of this event organizing is part of the country’s efforts for the 2036 bid, which sees FIFA World Cup host Qatar as the main rival.
“We have about 14 years to make things happen; that will be enough time,” National Olympic Committee (NOC) Indonesia chief Raja “Okto” Sapta Oktohari told The Jakarta Post on Thursday, during a gathering in Jakarta.