The National Sports Week 2024 (Indonesian: Pekan Olahraga Nasional XXI, abbreviated as PON XXI), also called as PON Aceh-Sumut 2024, is the twenty first edition of the National Sports Week (PON) which is a major national multi-sport event which take place from 9 to 20 September 2024 with Aceh and North Sumatra as hosts.
This edition marks the first time PON has been held by two provinces at once, also marks the first time it has been held in Aceh, and the second time it has been held in North Sumatra (previously in 1953). This is the fourth time PON has been held in Sumatra (previously Medan 1953, Palembang 2004, Pekanbaru 2012) and the first time since 2012. The youngest provinces, Southwest Papua, Highland Papua, Central Papua and South Papua will make their debut at the PON XXI event. The tournament returns to its usual four-year cycle after the previous tournament was delayed for a year to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PON XXI also commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Aceh and North Sumatra tsunami disaster, which occurred on 26 December 2004.
Bids The selection of the host took place at the Extraordinary National Sports Conference (Musornaslub) of National Sports Committee of Indonesia (KONI) on 24 April 2018, at the Bidakara Hotel, South Jakarta. This selection was made through a voting mechanism which was attended by KONI representatives from 34 provinces throughout Indonesia. Host provincesVotes–24 votes–8 votes2 votes
Development and preparations
Venues and infrastructure The North Sumatra government has prepared 100 hectares to build the Sumut Sport Centre for 2024 PON in Kualanamu, Deli Serdang Regency. The North Sumatra Provincial Government has also prepared 300 hectares of land in Sena Village, Batang Kuis, Deli Serdang Regency. Meanwhile, the Aceh government is preparing 240 hectares.
The Games
Opening ceremony The opening ceremony is scheduled to take place on 8 September 2024. The ceremony will take place at Harapan Bangsa Stadium, Banda Aceh.
Sports The National Sports Week 2024 (PON XXI) will feature 46 sports.
Aerosport
Aquatics
Baseball/Softball
Basketball
Bodybuilding, Powerlifting, Weightlifting
Football
Artistic gymnastics Rhythmic gymnastics Aerobic gymnastics
Field hockey (2) Indoor hockey (2)
Human-powered boat racing
Pool Sea
Indoor volleyball (2) Beach volleyball (2)
Freestyle (17) Greco-Roman (9)
Exhibition sports Eight sports will be competed as exhibitions at the XXI 2024 National Sports Week (PON) in Aceh and North Sumatra. The eight sports are ice skating, padel, teqball, floorball, pickleball, mixed martial arts, beach handball and horseback archery.
Participant All the 38 provinces and 1 authority of Indonesia will compete at this event. The details of the number of athletes for each contingent are: Sports Committee Number of Athletes Aceh 1070 North Sumatera 1153 West Sumatera 382 Riau 335 Riau Islands 106 Jambi 217 Bengkulu 68 South Sumatera 257 Bangka Belitung 114 Lampung 364 Special Region of Jakarta 1047 Banten 376 West Java 1210 Central Jawa 743 Special Region of Yogyakarta 443 East Jawa 885 Bali 545 West Nusa Tenggara 251 East Nusa Tenggara 188 West Kalimantan 142 Kalimantan Tengah 113 South Kalimantan 278 East Kalimantan 659 North Kalimantan 94 Capital City of Nusantara12 North Sulawesi 198 Gorontalo 83 Central Sulawesi 210 Southeast Sulawesi 148 South Sulawesi 404 West Sulawesi 59 North Maluku 30 Maluku 52 Southwest Papua34 West Papua 133 Central Papua51 Papua333 Highland Papua102 South Papua30
Participating Provincial Sports Committee All the 38 provinces and 1 authority of Indonesia will compete at this event, including the youngest provinces, Southwest Papua, Highland Papua, Central Papua, and South Papua, also Nusantara, will make their debut at the PON event. Participating Provincial Sports Committees PON XXI 2024 (host)
(host)
Calendar The following schedule is correct as of the latest update. The exact schedule can change up until the end of the games.All times and dates use Western Indonesia Time (UTC+7) OCOpening ceremony●Event competitions1Gold medal eventsCCClosing ceremony
Medal table List as per Wednesday, 21 September 2024 at 10:00 p.m. local time.
Notes
Concerns and controversies
Lead-up
The 2024 PON has been marred by numerous issues and is widely considered the worst in history. One of the most significant problems has been the substandard quality of food and transportation provided for the athletes. In addition to the incomplete construction of competition venues, various PON venues in Aceh have gradually collapsed during competitions due to their inability to withstand heavy rainfall. These include the collapsed roof of the shooting range, the destroyed archery field, and the shattered windows of the basketball court. These incidents have drawn significant international and domestic media attention, raising questions about the quality of preparations and management of such a large-scale sporting event.
Controversies
The 2024 PON men's soccer quarter-final match between Aceh and Central Sulawesi was marred by controversy triggered by the leadership of referee Eko Agus Sugih Harto from South Sumatra. His leadership was considered full of oddities, especially in several decisions that blatantly benefit Aceh, host of the event. The match became heated when the referee issued three red cards and gave two penalties to Aceh even though there were no clear violations. These decisions made the Central Sulawesi team feel unfairly treated until they finally decided not to continue the match when the score was still 1–1 in extra time. As a result of this incident, the Aceh team, which qualified for the semifinals, allegedly deliberately defeated themselves when facing East Java. This action was allegedly taken to avoid criticism from Indonesian netizens who were disappointed with Aceh's controversial victory over Central Sulawesi.
References
External links Official website of North Sumatra Event Committee (in Indonesian) Official website of Aceh Event Committee (in Indonesian)