Odekta impressed by enthusiasm of Merdeka Run participants

Indonesian runner Odekta Naibaho was impressed by the enthusiasm of participants at the Merdeka Run 2026, which took place at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Saturday.

The Indonesian running athlete considered the running event, part of the series of events for the 81st anniversary of the Republic of Indonesia, to be very lively.

“Wow, really cool. I even said, the roads are sterile, and on the left and right it’s like wow, extraordinary. Actually, this is the kind of event we want,” Odekta told reporters in Jakarta on Saturday.

According to Odekta, the cheers from spectators along the route passing through the HI Roundabout and Jalan Sudirman before returning to Merdeka Palace were highly motivating throughout the event.

Odekta said her finishing time exceeded the target she had set for the eight-kilometre event.

“Was the time limit target met? It exceeded my target. Too fast. Earlier it was 26 minutes and some seconds. Too fast, per kilometre it could be 3 minutes 20 seconds,” said Odekta.

The Merdeka Run 2026 was attended by 12,000 participants from various backgrounds.

This number increased significantly after the free event was initially targeted to be attended by 8,000 participants.