Grand reception for badminton king, queen

JP/byi

JAKARTA (JP): The wedding reception for Indonesia's badminton king and queen and Olympic gold medalists Alan Budikusuma and Susi Susanti drew more than 2,000 guests to the Gran Melia Hotel last night.

The guests included the Vice President (left, photo above) and Mrs. Tuty Try Sutrisno (right), State Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Hayono Isman, State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja and other well-known athletes, artists, businesspeople and dignitaries. The vice president is a former chairman of the Badminton Association of Indonesia.

The reception was opened by the association's chairman, Soerjadi.

Amigos para siempre (Friends forever), a theme song of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, accompanied the bride and groom as they entered the ballroom.

An Olympic image was presented in the performance by five children, each of whom wore costumes to represent the colors of the five continents participating in the games -- yellow for Asia, red for the Americas , black for Africa, green for Australia and blue for Europe.

Indonesian gymnast Zainal Abidin, dressed in red and white, performed around the circle of Olympic ribbons.

Alan and Susi were all smiles in the magnificent wedding as domestic and foreign TV camera crews, including CNN, Malaysian TV3 and StarTV Hong Kong, documented the gala event.

Susi, born on Feb. 11, 1971, in Tasikmalaya, West Java, won the first-ever Olympic gold medal for badminton singles and the first ever gained by Indonesia. She also won the All England badminton championships in 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1994 and has twice been world champion.

Alan, born on March 29, 1968, in Surabaya, East Java, gave Indonesia its second gold medal in the 1992 Olympics and won several Grand Prix Series and the 1993 World Championships. He has supported the Indonesian men's team at the Thomas Cup for several times.

Both, who have been in love for almost 10 years, plan to continue their badminton careers for a couple more years. (10)