TRIBUNSUMSEL.COM, PALEMBANG-The sport of Kabaddi only entered Indonesia, to be precise, in 2008.

This unique sport in India is thousands of years old.

Kabaddi is a sport that does not use equipment.

This exercise is simple but healthy and gets the whole body moving.

In order to attract talented athletes throughout Indonesia in the field of Kabaddi sports, the general management of the All Indonesian Kabaddi Sports Forum (FOKSI) appointed PGRI University as a leader to socialize Kabaddi in South Sumatra, in particularly in Palembang.

“This sport is cheap, healthy but can be successful. So our goal is actually to want people to be healthy through this sport,” said PB FOKSI Judge Referee Division Head Made Bang Redy Utama, Monday (10/28/2019).

He said UPGRI Palembang was chosen because Universitas PGRI Palembang has a sports campus separate from the main campus (Campus B).

“So, the grand board of directors of the All Indonesia Kabaddi Sports Forum (FOKSI) aims to socialize the sport of Kabaddi in Sumatra through UPGRI,” he said.

“In South Sumatra and especially in Palembang, UPGRI Palembang would later become a leader in the development of the sport of Kabaddi in South Sumatra. We have great hopes for the progress of the sport of Kabaddi in Indonesia,” he said.

PB FOKSI also saw that from body posture, UPGRI students already had a category to become Kabaddi athletes.
“However, it must be supplemented with a training program, usually sports students quickly take up new sports because they are used to the sport,” he explained.

“So all they have to do is develop their technique, their physique is fine, the technique, the strategy, the game itself, that's it,” he said.

This Kabaddi sport has 4 elements apart from the gaming element, this Indian sports game has other elements namely martial arts, traditional arts and yoga.

Foksi Secretary General Dr. Maryoto Subekti MFor added that sports has become a necessity and even supports education.

“The sport of Kabaddi is quite an old sport in India, but in Indonesia it is still new,” he said.