SMAN 2 Banjarmasin Ensures Special Sports Class Athletes Still Advance to the Next Grade

SMAN 2 Banjarmasin has finally confirmed that a number of student-athletes in the Special Sports Class (KKO) will still advance to the next grade. This decision was made after the school aligned its internal rules with Ministry of Education regulations, which provide special appreciation for students achieving in non-academic fields.

The Principal of SMAN 2 Banjarmasin, Muhdi Harto, delivered this assurance directly during a joint press conference with the Head of the Education and Culture Office of South Kalimantan (Kalsel) Province, H. Abdul Rahim, and representatives from the South Kalimantan Youth and Sports Office (Dispora) on Friday (24/7/2026). Muhdi emphasized that this issue has been resolved well for the sake of the athletes' future.

According to Muhdi, the controversy stemmed from a misunderstanding in the application of regulations. The school had previously only referred to strict internal technical guidelines without realizing there was a higher regulation from the ministry. The central regulation provides added value for sports-achieving students, which ultimately helped boost their academic grades to meet the Minimum Completeness Criteria (KKM).

Responding to this, the Head of the South Kalimantan Education and Culture Office, H. Abdul Rahim, stated that his office would immediately draft a Governor's Regulation (Pergub). This new regulation is expected to serve as a clear and comprehensive legal framework for all schools running the KKO program in the South Kalimantan region, preventing overlapping regulations in the future.

Meanwhile, the South Kalimantan Youth and Sports Office (Dispora) committed to continuing to monitor the balance between academic and athletic achievements for the fostered athletes. The good news is that all student-athletes who had previously planned to transfer schools have now cancelled their plans and will remain at SMAN 2 Banjarmasin. The school also promised to evaluate the KKO recruitment system to make it more accommodating for all sports disciplines, including chess and shooting.