The Papua Mountains Indonesian Women's Football Association has designated the 2026 Pertiwi Cup as a training and selection event for women's football players to compete in the qualifying rounds for the 2027 National Sports Week.
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ASBWI Papua Pegunungan Chairman Issan Sambur in Wamena, Saturday, said the tournament was to explore the potential of female soccer players from various regions in Papua Pegunungan.
"We acknowledge that this is the first time the Pertiwi Cup tournament has been held in the Papua Highlands, aiming to maximize the potential of the region's women to hone their skills in soccer," he said after opening the 2026 Papua Pegunungan Pertiwi Cup at the Wamena Education Stadium.
According to Issan, the Papua Highlands region has great potential in women's football, which needs to be continuously developed through competitions and ongoing coaching.
He mentioned the women's football achievements from the region, including winning the Pertiwi Cup four times in a row at the national level.
In addition, the Papua Mountains women's soccer team won a bronze medal at the 21st Aceh-North Sumatra National Sports Week (PON) 2024.
"We surprisingly managed to win a bronze medal at the 21st National Games in Aceh, North Sumatra, in 2024. This demonstrates the enormous potential of women's football in the Papua Highlands, which requires maximum support and encouragement," he said.
Issan said the Papua Mountains Pertiwi Cup also serves as a means to monitor the abilities of players from various districts in preparation for the 2027 Pre-PON competition leading up to the XXII PON in East Nusa Tenggara-West Nusa Tenggara.
"We deliberately held this Pertiwi Cup because for several years, the Papua Mountains team has been represented by Persitoli Tolikara. Therefore, this year's event aims to showcase the football potential of other regions in Papua Mountains. This event also serves as a means of selecting players for the 2027 Pre-PON women's football competition," he said.
He explained that players trained through the Papua Mountains Pertiwi Cup also have the opportunity to participate in national-level competitions.
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