Indonesia meets own target with six golds in Asiad
BANGKOK (JP): When runner Supriati Sutono lurched over the finish line to win the women's 5,000 meters on Friday, Indonesia met the target it set for itself at the 13th Asian Games.
Fielding 128 athletes in 21 sports, Indonesia wound up its Asiad campaign on Sunday with six gold, 10 silver and 11 bronze medals. It ranked 11th on the medal standings, the same position it gained at the Hiroshima Asiad but far behind Southeast Asian neighbor Thailand. The host nation completed its glorious run in fourth place with a haul of 24 golds.
Deserved thanks must go to the Indonesian gold medalists, including several surprise winners, for enabling their country to hold its head up high despite the shattering turmoil off the playing field of the past year.
Men's badminton team
The winning team, mostly banking on Asiad debutants such as Hendrawan, Taufik Hidayat, Budi Santoso and doubles specialists Candra Wijaya and Tony Gunawan, crushed China 4-0 in the final to retain the gold won in Hiroshima.
In a daring move, Indonesia reshuffled its Thomas Cup team, which won its third straight victory in May, for the Asiad. It picked a younger squad of Taufik, Budi, Tony and Tri Kusherjanto over chronically injured Hariyanto Arbi, Marlev Mainaky, underform Indra Wijaya and disgraced Sigit Budiarto, serving a one-year drug suspension.
Virtually an unknown quantity going into the Games, the revamped Indonesian team was seeded second behind China.
The tremendous performances by Taufik, Budi, Candra and Tony have raised hopes they will fill the shoes of their distinguished compatriots.
Ricky Ahmad Subagja/Rexy Ronald Mainaky
At 30 and 27, Rexy and Ricky were the two veterans on the badminton team. Their wealth of experience more than made up for any age disadvantages as they claimed back-to-back men's doubles golds.
Solid teamwork and the uncanny ability to compensate for each other's weaknesses are keys to their success. During their seven- year partnership, the duo have collected nearly all the sport's major trophies, most notably Olympic gold in 1996.
Rexy is planning to retire within the next two years, depending on whether he can keep up with his juniors for the 2000 Olympics. Ricky plans to follow if a suitable younger partner is unavailable.
Yayuk Basuki
Born Nani Rahayu Basuki, Yayuk Basuki realized her longtime dream of Asiad singles gold on the threshold of retirement.
Her collection of four golds during four Asiad appearances date back to 1986 when, at the age of 16, she shared women's doubles glory with Suzanna Anggarkusuma.
Yayuk's road to victory in Bangkok included two upsets of higher ranked Chinese Li Fang and Thai heroine Tamarine Tanasugarn.
Her success could not be categorized a complete surprise because she has been ranked as high as 20 on the circuit and has a slew of top victims under her belt. Considered by many one of the most talented and athletically gifted women's players, Yayuk will retire following the Australian Open next month.
Supriati Sutono
Her dramatic win has been lauded as one of the biggest surprises of the Asiad.
Nobody dared bet on her before the race began, even up to 100 meters before the finish. The slight Army sergeant sneaked unnoticed through the pack in the last few meters to overtake pacesetter Sunita Rani of India and grab gold, the first in track for her country in 36 years.
Supriati, who finished fifth in the 10,000m, edged Rani by just two hundredths of a second.
I Gusti Made Oka Sulaksana
Oka would have not won the coveted gold medal if his protest against his chief rival Kenjo Motokazu's unsportsmanlike behavior had been dismissed by the jury.
Indonesia's chef de mission Mochammad Hindarto had said earlier that the surfer had a realistic chance to win a gold based on his performance in Asiad warm-up events in Australia.
Oka, raised on the beaches of Sanur, Bali, has his sights set on the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
"I have always dreamed of competing in the Olympics," the 27- year-old said.
Arief Taufan Syamsuddin
With the Indonesian karate team's expectation to win a gold medal from women's 60kg specialist Nilawati Daud dashed, Arief Taufan Syamsuddin shrugged off injury to emerge as an unlikely hero.
Arief, 24 and competing in the men's 60kg division, sustained a foot injury in his semifinal bout against Adnan Laoundi of Syria. But he was still too good for Fakhruddin Taher of United Arab Emirates in the final.
"I never thought about winning the medal. All I had on my mind was how to win every match," Arief said. "The injury didn't matter to me at all." (yan)