Dewi joins elite squad, thanks to her dad
Dewi joins elite squad, thanks to her dad
SURAKARTA, Central Java (JP): Dewi Tira was just a third grade
student at an elementary school in Surabaya when her father
Suwandi introduced badminton to her.
She did not like it at first but somehow she could not escape
her father's instruction to keep practicing. Eight years later,
she thanked him for introducing the sport as she has just managed
to join the country's elite squad at the Indonesian Badminton
Center in Cipayung, East Jakarta.
"I still remember how I really hated badminton at the time my
father began to introduce me to the sport. But one or two years
later I started to like it," she told The Jakarta Post on the
sidelines of the Milo Junior Indonesia Open on Thursday.
"I can't remember exactly what happened but I just got more
and more fond of it. My whole family has given me their support
for my total involvement in badminton."
Born in Surabaya on Jan. 18 1984 as the second of three
siblings, Dewi started to play badminton at the age of nine.
Being admitted to the center in February, Dewi and another
junior Dian Novita of Djarum Kudus directly joined seniors Lidya
Djaelawijaya, Yuli Marfuah, Atu Rosalina and Cindana Hartono as
the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI) has been desperate
to find new talent to replace former badminton queen Susy Susanti
and sidekick Mia Audina, who moved to the Netherlands two years
ago.
"My technique has been improving since being admitted to the
center. Previously, I only focused on physical training at the
Semen Gresik training camp before joining Surya Naga Gudang
Garam," Dewi said.
"But I must work very hard at the center to be able to catch
up with my seniors."
Dewi achieved her best performance so far when she grabbed the
girl's singles title at the 1999 Surabaya Cup in the under-16
division. She also reached the semifinals of the 2001 Jakarta
Open losing to a Malaysian shuttler.
She got as far as the semifinals of the 2001 Junior National
Championships in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, when she was
defeated by Dian Novita who went on to grab the title.
Dewi said she really admired world number one Gong Zhichao of
China and is aiming to reach a similar level with her idol.
"Gong is not tall but she is very agile and aggressive on
court. Her physical stature does not deter her from reaching the
top. She's very patient on court, which leads her opponents to
make unforced errors."
"I must work really hard to reach the same level as Gong."
"It will be up to me to get better achievements. I also expect
PBSI to send us, junior shuttlers to more international events to
add to our experience." (nvn)