[1][2][3] The sport began to spread throughout the country, spearheaded by the formation of many athletic clubs such as ISV, Hellas, and IAC in Jakarta, ABA in Solo, and PAS in Surabaya.

[2] Many such clubs were members of the Nederlandsche Indische Athletik Unie, or NIAU or the Athletics Association of the Dutch East Indies (Indonesian: Perserikatan Atletik Hindia Belanda), formed in 1917.

[2] In 1947, the Sports Association of the Republic of Indonesia (Indonesian: Persatuan Olahraga Republik Indonesia; abbreviated as PORI) was formed to be a forum for national sports activities in the newly found Republics.

[1] Whatever the version, PASI was founded in the 1950s and remains the only umbrella for the sport of athletics in Indonesia to this very day.

[5] First elected in 1976 to replace Sayidiman Suryohadiprojo, H. Mohammad Hassan led PASI until his death on March 31, 2020 due to cancer at the age of 89 years old.

[7][8] For that dedication, Hasan was named 'the father of Indonesian athletics' after he was elected as PASI's chairman for the 2016–2020 period.