VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Photo credit: RRI/Antara

Indonesia's Independence Day is not only celebrated with a flag ceremony but also with competitions. One of the competitions often held during Independence Day is the sack race. As the name suggests, the traditional game uses sacks as the main tool. Usually, the type of sack used in Indonesia is a gunny sack. Gunny sacks are used because they are thicker and more durable compared to other sacks.

In sack races, usually five to seven players take part in a race. Each player will wear a gunny sack and start racing by jumping. The player who reaches the finish line first will be declared the race winner. Even though it looks easy, it actually requires good physical ability to win this race. It is common for each player to fall and roll over in the racing arena. This atmosphere makes the competition even more exciting. As time goes by, the sack race experiences changes and other forms of variation. One of the game's variations is a sack race using a helmet. The competition is usually held for children.

As quoted from Jakarta's Office of Cultural Affairs website, the Indonesian term of sack race, "balap karung", was first used in the Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta. No archive explains the origin of the sack race in Indonesia. However, the game is believed to have been played by the people of Jakarta, especially the Betawi people, the native people of Jakarta, since the Dutch colonial period. The game was originally played by children aged 6 to 12 at Dutch school celebrations. Later, adults began to participate in the sack race at several celebratory events in Jakarta.