Youth and Sports Minister Proud of Indonesia's Fencing Improvement at Asian Level
Jakarta — Youth and Sports Minister Erick Thohir expressed pride in Indonesian fencers demonstrating improved competitive ability at the Asian level during the 2026 Asian Cadet and Junior Fencing Championship held at Jakarta International Convention Center (JICC) in Senayan.
“What makes me proud is that Indonesian fencing, which was previously ranked 64th, has now reached 32nd place,” said Erick Thohir in Jakarta on Friday.
The Sports Minister attended the ceremony and presented medals to gold medallists on the final day of the 2026 Asian Cadet and Junior Fencing Championship. Three gold medals were contested on the final day, with China dominating the results by securing two additional golds in the men’s junior team sabre and women’s junior team foil events, whilst Chinese Taipei secured gold in the men’s junior team épée event.
Although Indonesia did not capture any medals at the championship, the host nation’s improved competitive performance at the Asian level was welcomed with appreciation from the Sports Minister.
On this occasion, the Sports Minister also stated that athletes who suffer injuries need not worry, as his office has prepared recovery facilities and sport science services at the Cibubur Youth Elite Sport Center (CYESC) in Cibubur, East Jakarta.
“We are creating innovation in Cibubur as a sport science and recovery centre, including various athlete support services,” he said.
“We are revising the DBON (National Sports Development Policy), and with fencing now included, we will subsequently focus on making it one of our short-term, medium-term, and long-term programmes,” he added.
He stated that with fencing’s inclusion in the list of priority sports, the government hopes Indonesia’s performance at Asian and international levels will become increasingly competitive in the coming years.
He further noted that his office is also focused on developing athletes with targets to achieve success at multi-sport events ranging from SEA Games level, Asian Games, to the Olympics.
“Hopefully we can create capable and successful fencing athletes,” he concluded.