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RI squad ‘in transition’ ahead of Tokyo Olympics
High hopes: National sport climbing athlete Aries Susanti Rahayu competes in the women’s boulder category of the World Sport Climbing Championship in Moscow on Saturday
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igh hopes: National sport climbing athlete Aries Susanti Rahayu competes in the women’s boulder category of the World Sport Climbing Championship in Moscow on Saturday. Indonesia has sent 10 athletes to the championship, which serves as a qualifying event for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.(Antara/Hendra Nurdiyansyah)
Looking to make its Summer Games debut in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Indonesia’s national sport climbing team has been gearing up for the big event with a series of both victories and disappointments.
Their success last year — including clinching three gold medals at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, South Sumatra — means the entire country is expecting Aries Susanti Rahayu, the world number four in women’s speed climbing, and her teammates to achieve nothing but greatness in Tokyo.
The journey to the Olympics will not be easy for the red-and-white team as Tokyo will only feature three disciplines, namely bouldering, lead and speed. Each climber will compete in all three disciplines, with their final ranking being determined by their combined results.
Host Japan will be a strong contender in all three categories, having proved its mettle by winning one gold, one silver and one bronze medal in the 2018 Asian Games.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian climbers seem to have mastered only the speed discipline. Aries and Aspar Jalelolo have succeeded in winning several World Cups in the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) series.
Knowing that they will face a bumpy road ahead of the Summer Games, the Indonesian team is going the extra mile to prepare for the challenge.
Coach Hendra Basir said the team was currently in a transitional phase, which he believes is the most challenging part of the training program.
“We are in a difficult phase because we have to shift [our mind and body] from competing in just one [discipline] to three. Combined events and speed are totally different battles as the two apply a different approach in power usage,” Hendra told The Jakarta Post in a telephone interview on Wednesday.
“This transitional phase is like forcing a sprinter to compete in a marathon. Speed [like in sprint] needs explosive power, while a combined event is all about endurance.”
The challenge was reflected in the team’s poor results at the Meiringen World Cup in Switzerland on April 5 and 6, which only featured bouldering.
Despite the disappointment, Hendra said his team was making good progress as their training was now focused on developing the fundamental skills for lead and bouldering. The team has also been practicing on climbing platforms that are suitable for the upcoming competition.
“This kind of training will automatically decrease the speed of the athletes. Aries and Aspar, who specialize in the speed category, will have to work more on their endurance,” he said.
The Indonesian Sports Climbing Team (FPTI) has selected 10 climbers to compete in a pre-Tokyo event in February 2020. Ahead of the event, the 10 — including Aries and Aspar — are set to compete in several World Cup series that also serve as Olympics qualifiers in August and November this year.
After Switzerland, the Indonesian squad headed to Moscow to compete in the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) World Cup series, which features speed and bouldering competitions.
On Friday, Aries finished second in the women’s speed category.
Aries, who was named in Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 list, said she still found specific techniques in lead and bouldering very difficult.
“I’ve been training in speed for years, while lead and bouldering are new to me. The training has been quite hard. I’ve only been practicing the two categories in the last two months, so I haven’t shown any significant progress,” she told the Post.
Despite the challenge, she is still on a mission to stay on top in every World Cup series ahead of the Olympics.
Meanwhile, Hendra said he was optimistic the Indonesian climbers would qualify for the upcoming Olympics. The first qualifier will be held during the IFSC World Championship in Hachioji, Japan, on Aug. 11-21.
“The [Tokyo organizers’] decision in featuring only the combined event has also upset other countries, not just [Indonesia,” he said. “The thing is, we’re burdened with a high target, even though we have just started practicing.”
“We want our climbers to be in the top 30 in lead and bouldering,” he added.
