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Indonesia wins the first Thomas Cup in 19 years but without flying the national flag
Indonesia is barred from raising the country's flag in international sporting events due to being sanctioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for noncompliance with drug-testing rules.
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Players from Indonesia pose with the trophy and their medals after winning the Thomas Cup men’s team final against China in Aarhus, Denmark, on Oct. 17, 2021.
(AFP/Claus Fisker/Ritzau Scanpix)
I
ndonesia won the Thomas Cup title for the first time in 19 years after beating China 3-0 in Sunday's final at Ceres Arena in Aarhus, Denmark.
It was Indonesia's 14th overall title in the history of the tournament, better than China's 10 titles. The last time Indonesia held the title was in 2002.
But the celebration on stage during the trophy ceremony was subdued for Indonesia as there was no hoisting of the national flag due to the country being sanctioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for noncompliance with drug-testing rules.
This was because the Indonesian Anti-Doping Agency (LADI) failed to submit the 2020 and 2021 doping test samples that were requested by WADA. Youth and Sports Minister Zainudin Amali explained on Oct. 8, as quoted by kompas.com, that it was hard to collect samples because almost no sports events were held in Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a result, Indonesia, along with Thailand and North Korea, is barred from raising the country's flag in international sporting events and not allowed to participate in bidding to host sporting events.
"We have processed the testing plan since Sept. 15. But there are still pending matters: administrative problems from 2017 that have piled up until now. So [we] are regarded as noncompliant," LADI deputy chief Rheza Maulana told The Jakarta Post on Monday without elaborating.
Zainudin, along with LADI secretary general Dessy Rosmelita, apologized to the public on Monday for the flag incident.
