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Jakarta Post

Asian Para Games: Indonesian athletes exceed target, winning 23 golds

The Indonesian national contingent is really getting into its stride now, claiming yet more golds in chess, table tennis and track and field.

News Desk (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Thu, October 11, 2018

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Asian Para Games: Indonesian athletes exceed target, winning 23 golds City sparks: Fireworks enliven the opening of the third Asian Para Games at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Saturday. (The Jakarta Post/Seto Wardhana)

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he Indonesian national contingent is really getting into its stride now, claiming yet more golds in chess, table tennis and track and field. Sitting sixth in the medal table, Indonesia has bagged 23 golds, 29 silvers and 34 bronzes. 

If this medal winning pattern continues, there is a very good possibility that Indonesia could move to a higher position in the medal table, replacing Japan, which currently occupies fifth place with its 23 gold, 42 silver and 44 bronze medals, or even fourth-placed Uzbekistan, which has earned 25 golds, 12 silvers and 10 bronzes.

Sprinter Karisma Evi Tiarani put on an outstanding performance with her first victory in the women’s 100-meter sprint T42/T63, winning the gold medal with a time of 14.98 seconds. In her wake came two Japanese sprinters: Maekawa Kaede, who finished in 16. 89 seconds to take second position, and Tozawa Tomomi, who clocked in at 16.98 seconds to claim third.

This was Evi’s second medal as she had already bagged a silver medal in the women’s long jump T42-44/61-64.

Commenting on her win, Evi acknowledged that it was expected. “The initial target was actually two golds. But alhamdulillah [Thank God] I was able to snatch one,” she said as quoted by Antara.

Three Indonesian sprinters Putri Aulia, Ni Made Arianti Putri and Endang Sari Sitorus made another surprise by sweeping all the medals in the women’s 100m T13 (visual impairment), stunning the home crowd at the Gelora Bung Karno sports complex.

Putri was the fastest, finishing the race in 12.49 seconds, followed by Arianti with 13.00, while Endang came in third place behind her compatriots with a time of 13.07 seconds.

Immediately after the race, the trio ran together with the Indonesian flag on their back, approaching the spectators’ area.

Putri, Arianti and Endang agreed that finishing together in the top three positions was beyond their expectation.

“When I saw there was a Japanese sprinter in the race, I was quite worried actually. But Putri assured me we could do it,” Endang said. “Alhamdulillah[thank God], we finished top three.”

The table tennis contingent claimed three more gold medals, a day after David Jacobs took the country’s first table tennis gold in the TT10 men’s singles event.

The three gold medals were all won in the doubles category. The victorious pairs were David Jacobs and Komet Akbar in the men’s doubles TT10 event, Mohamad Rian Prahasta and Suwarti in the mixed doubles class 6-8 event, and Agus Sutanto and Tatok Hardiyanto in the men’s doubles TT 4-5 event.

“This achievement exceeds our target. We aimed to win two gold medals, but it turns out we achieved four,” said Bayu Widhie Hapsara, Indonesia table tennis head coach.

Bayu hoped his team could maintain its performance and play well at the 2019 ASEAN Para Games in the Philippines.

Indonesia’s table tennis players will also take part in the qualifications for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

“The athletes have good physical condition and technique. But they must not stop practicing after they return to their hometowns,” Bayu said.

There is still a chance for Indonesia to grab more gold medals from three events in the team category, namely the men’s class 8 event, the men’s T11 event and the women’s T11 event. The three events will take place on Thursday.

One of the gold medalists, Suwarti, also turned out to be pregnant while competing.

“Yes, I’m now 18 weeks pregnant,” she said after the match.

Suwarti admitted she was not in peak physical condition because of her pregnancy, but she tried her best to carry on with her activities. She often arrived late to training sessions because of nausea.

“Early in my pregnancy, I often vomited. I turned up late for training while my teammates completed their workout,” Suwarti recalled. “Fortunately the child in my womb cooperated.”

Suwarti first knew she was pregnant when participating in a test event for the Asian Para Games in July. At that time, she consulted her doctor and her trainer about participating in the Games. The doctor said Suwarti was healthy and fit for the competition. 

“The Asian Para Games is my last competition before I take maternity leave,” Suwarti said.

The Indonesian chess contingent picked up six golds, three silvers and three bronzes at Cempaka Putih Sports Hall.

Chess team manager Heri Isranto praised the team’s performance, acknowledging that they had exceeded their initial target of four gold medals.

“Given our hard work and training, I had faith that we were going to deliver to the maximum. The speed chess category is still to come, where we also excel. I believe we can also make our mark in this category,” he said.

The national team won 14 gold medals at the 2017 ASEAN Para Games in Kuala Lumpur, exceeding its initial target of 12.

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