Interview with the President of the Asian Sepaktakraw Federation, Abdul Halim Bin Kader, BBM

If there is one sporting event that combines the teamwork of volleyball, the passing skills of football and the ferocious smash of badminton, it is Sepaktakraw. 

Sepaktakraw, which originated in Malay, is a traditional sport in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries, and is widely popular in Southeast Asia. 

Although it was only popularized in China in the 1980s, it was at the 1990 Beijing Asian Games that Sepaktakraw was introduced as an official event. 

At the Hangzhou Asian Games, the Sepaktakraw event will be held at the Jinhua Sports Centre Gymnasium, with six gold medals expected. The official magazine Hangzhou Asian Games interviewed Abdul Halim Kader, president of the Asian Sepaktakraw Federation, about the preparations for the event and how well they are expected to perform at the Hangzhou Asian Games.

The Hangzhou Asian Games is crucial for Sepaktakraw to enter the Olympic Games 

"Sepaktakraw is a very fashionable sport." Halim said, In 1990, Sepaktakraw was included at the Asian Games in Beijing. Since then, Sepaktakraw has grown not only as a sport but one with high levels of commercial and entertainment value. "With the development and promotion of Sepaktakraw in recent years, a variety of regional competitions have emerged from Southeast Asia and across the globe." 

It is reported that, after the 1990 Beijing Asian Games, China has hosted a variety of Sepaktakraw games, including the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, the 2012 Asian Beach Games in Qingdao, the 2019 ASTAF Championships in Kunming, and so on. In addition, the expanding scope and proliferation of tournaments, from the Swiss Open to the Junior 

Sepaktakraw Championships in India to the Thai league, have greatly increased the talent pool for Sepaktakraw. 

"The Hangzhou Asian Games will be a milestone for Sepaktakraw and will be crucial in the current efforts of the sport to submit all the legal documents to the IOC and the 23 other sports federations to push for IOC recognition of the sport." Halim is confident that Sepaktakraw will become an IOC recognised sport in the near future.

The preparations for the Hangzhou Asian Games were highly appreciated

In order to promote the preparations for the Asian Games Sepaktakraw event and test competition, from February 28 to March 1, Halim led the Asian Sepaktakraw Federation to Jinhua, Zhejiang Province to investigate the Hangzhou Asian Games Sepaktakraw event preparations. During the investigation, the delegation of the Asian Sepaktakraw Federation went to Jinhua Sports Centre Gymnasium for a field exploration of the venues for Sepaktakraw, and held a coordination meeting with the Competition Department of the Hangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee and Jinhua Venue to study the selection of technical officials for Sepaktakraw Games, the test event and other preparatory work for the Asian Games. Halim spoke highly of the preparations for the Hangzhou Asian Games. "Preparations for the Hangzhou Asian Games are progressing smoothly and a lot of work has been completed ahead of schedule, and I am confident that the Asian Sepaktakraw Championships as a test event will be held as scheduled." Halim said it was a great honour to hold a test event in Hangzhou, the host city of the Asian Games. 

"We fully understand the extraordinary importance of ensuring that the Hangzhou Asian Games are held at the highest standard." Halim said the importance was not only in technical aspects, but also in other non-technical (event supporting services) aspects, including security, volunteermanagement, cultural events, athlete and spectator experience, and broadcast media. "Through such a high-level event, various problems can be identified and resolved to ensure we are fully prepared for the Hangzhou Asian Games." 

Hangzhou has set a high standard for the future Asian Games 

"China's achievements and demonstrated ability to effectively host large-scale Sepaktakraw events since 1990 have undoubtedly earned the credibility to host the 19th Asian Games." Halim said the best news for him was that the tournament was being hosted in Hangzhou, "a city of which I personally felt the warmth during my recent visit." 

"The Hangzhou Asian Games Sepaktakraw Stadium is a high standard venue, very good from the venue to the VIP rooms. I believe the Sepaktakraw games will be wonderful." Halim said the HAGOC has really raised the standard of Sepaktakraw considerably and set a very high benchmark for future Asian Games. 

"I believe this highly competitive and enjoyable sport will attract more attention and win more applause at the Hangzhou Asian Games."