NASCAR announced Thursday that it will resume its season without fans starting May 17 at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina with the premier Cup Series racing three more times in a 10-day span.  

NASCAR joins the UFC as the first major sports organizations to announce specific return to play plans since the coronavirus pandemic shut down U.S. sports in mid-March.  

“NASCAR and its teams are eager and excited to return to racing, and have great respect for the responsibility that comes with a return to competition,” said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer. “NASCAR will return in an environment that will ensure the safety of our competitors, officials and all those in the local community. 

NASCAR’s revised schedule goes only through May and has a pair of Wednesday Cup races, fulfilling fans longtime plea for midweek events. The first race is scheduled for Darlington, NASCAR’s oldest superspeedway, followed by a second race at the 70-year-old, egg-shaped oval track three days later.  

Charlotte Motor Speedway will then host the Coca-Cola 600 on May 24 to mark 60 consecutive years the longest race on the NASCAR schedule will be held on Memorial Day weekend. The track in Concord, outside NASCAR’s home base of Charlotte, will then host a Wednesday race three days later.  

There will also be lower-tier Xfinity and Trucks series races at the two tracks. The North Carolina governor has said the the Charlotte races can be held as long as health conditions in the area do not deteriorate. 

“This has been a proactive effort to put our motorsports industry back to work and boost the morale of sports fans around the world, while at the same time keeping the health and safety of all who will be on site the top priority,” said Marcus Smith, president and CEO of Speedway Motorsports. He said “sports fans around the world need this, a return to some sense of normalcy with live sports on TV, and NASCAR is uniquely positioned to deliver it from a competition standpoint.” 

NASCAR has set guidelines to safely hold the events using CDC guidelines on social distancing and personal protective equipment. Only essential personnel will be permitted to attend the events, and cloth face masks will be required. The entire venue will be used to maintain distancing in garage stalls and where the haulers are parked.  

NASCAR suspended its season March 13 with only four of its 36 scheduled races completed. The stock car series, heavily reliant on television money and sponsor payments, has vowed to complete its full schedule. The revised schedule for now stays at tracks within driving distance of Charlotte-based race teams and in states that have started reopening.  

“Darlington is one of the most iconic and historic tracks in the sport and will be a tremendous backdrop when NASCAR returns to racing,” said track President Kerry Tharp, who noted the track will now have three Cup races in one season for the first time in its history.  

Darlington is also scheduled to open the playoffs with the Southern 500 on Sept. 6. Because the track now has two additional dates, NASCAR will lose two Cup races from its other properties. The same goes for Speedway Motorsports, which gained one additional race so far and will have to forfeit one at another facility.  

Almost all teams began returning to their shops this week with either a reduced initial workforce or in split shifts. Now that NASCAR has told the teams where it will be racing this month, they can start preparing cars suitable for the two tracks.  

Although Florida and Texas invited NASCAR to compete in those states without spectators, the sanctioning body is holding off on scheduling events at tracks that require air travel and hotel accommodations. 

Source: Voice of America

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia and Romania further discussed opportunities for cooperation in the placement of workers with specific skills, particularly in health and manufacturing services, to Romania, as outlined in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between both nations.

This was conveyed during the meeting of Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah, who had paid an honorary visit to Indonesian Ambassador to Romania, Moldova Amhar Azeth, at the Ministry of Manpower office, Jakarta, Thursday.

Fauziyah remarked that the meeting discussed the follow-up concerning the draft bilateral MoU between the Indonesian government and Romania, especially in the field of labor.

This MoU will later be binding for the two governments for the placement of formal Indonesian workers in Romania

“The draft MoU is final and has been submitted to the Romanian Embassy in Jakarta and the Indonesian Embassy in Bucharest through a diplomatic note from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We wait for further response from the Romanian side,” Fauziyah noted in a statement here on Thursday.

Manpower Minister Fauziyah remarked that the memorandum also focused on promoting and developing cooperative activities in the fields of employment and social protection.

Some forms of activities included in the exchange of information, social protection for workers for both countries, as well as student exchanges and work permits in both countries, Minister Fauziyah remarked.

In the meantime, Head of the Foreign Cooperation Bureau Indah Putri Anggoro stated that currently, Romania is looking for workers with specific skills, especially in the fields of health services and manufacturing.

This is since Romania has shown greater interest in formal workers from Indonesia owing to their good and friendly conduct, she stated.

“Romania highlighted fields with great prospects and urgently required today, such as spa therapists, restaurant waiters, assistant chefs, and certified truck drivers,” Anggoro added.

Source: ANTARA News

New Clark City, Philippines (ANTARA) – Indonesia’s top runner Agus Prayogo clinched a gold medal in the men’s marathon event at the 2019 Southeast Asia (SEA) Games multi-sport competition, thereby becoming the first gold medalist in athletics for the national team.

Prayogo won the race by clocking a time of 2:26:48 after running for 42 kilometers at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium, here, today. When he nearly reached the finish line, Prayogo unfurled Indonesia’s national red and white flag over his shoulders.

“I am beyond grateful on winning the gold medal, as it is my first gold in the men’s marathon and for Indonesia’s athletic team. I hope this victory would motivate other fellow athletes to grab more gold medals in the competition,” Prayogo emphasized.

Prayogo, a silver medallist in the 2017 SEA Games, highlighted that the running track was one of the top challenges in this year’s race. “It was a concrete floor instead of asphalt, so the impact forces are higher while attempting to maintain the running pace,” he expounded.

Apart from the running track, Prayogo stated that the heat and high humidity also posed challenges during the race. “We began running at 5:45 a.m. local time, and the sun was already up, and the heat was unbearable,” Prayogo recalled.

Coming second after Prayogo was Thailand’s Sanchai Namkhet, who reached the finish line 30 seconds later. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s Muhaizar Mohamad completed the race five minutes and 50 seconds later and pocketed a bronze medal.

Another Indonesian runner Welman David Pasaribu came fourth, with a gap of six minutes and 59 seconds from Prayogo’s finish time.

However, Indonesia’s Odekta Elfina Naibaho was unable to win a medal in the women’s marathon.

Source: ANTARA News

The team gave two performances for the elimination and grand final sessions and by then the champion was announced.

Tangerang (ANTARA) – The cultural mission team of Labschool Cibubur High School brought international glory to Indonesia by winning the XXX Prague Stars Folklore Competition 2019 in Prague, Czech Republic, on November 3-4, 2019.

Some 13 countries worldwide dispatched their delegations to the competition held by the European Association Folklore Festival and Prague City Council to deliver their respective traditional dance and music performances.

“The team performed twice for the elimination and grand final sessions after which the champion was announced,” Eli Noviami Hayi, the team companion, remarked while arriving at the Soekarno Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, Wednesday.

A total of 28 students of Labschool that were part of the team performed three folklore dances of Indonesia: Enggang Dance, Giring Giring, and Ratoe Jaroe.

School headmaster Ali Chudori noted that the glory brings pride to the nation, particularly when it took place during the month of National Heroes Day that was commemorated on November 10.

“It was the most beautiful present on this year’s National Heroes Day,” Chudori stated.

Source: ANTARA News

I believe that the committee is reliable to organize the upcoming international championship, and also the province is 100 percent ready to be a good host for Indonesia’s good image to the world.

Palembang, S Sumatra (ANTARA) – Hundreds of athletes globally will participate in the world’s bowling championship held by the Indonesian Bowling Association at Jakabaring Stadium in Palembang, South Sumatra, on November 16-24, 2019.

Head of the Indonesian Bowling Association Percha Leanpuri, in a statement received in Palembang on Friday, expressed gratitude as South Sumatra Province had facilitated the international bowling event.

South Sumatra Governor Herman Deru stated that Palembang’s preparations to host the event are currently completed.

“I believe that the committee is reliable to organize the upcoming international championship, and also the province is 100 percent ready to be a good host for Indonesia’s good image to the world,” Deru noted.

As for today, some 76 countries, with 132 athletes comprising 74 male athletes, 62 female athletes, and 112 officials, have confirmed their participation in the event.

Source: ANTARA News