Brilio.net/en - Merdeka, Indonesia! As 71st Independence Day celebrations wound down on Wednesday, a huge piece of news from the Rio Olympics in Brazil got the nation excited all over again. Ahmad Tontowi and Liliyana Natsir won their Badminton mixed doubles final, beating Malaysias Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying into silver.
Indonesia's golden pair won in straight sets, with a score of 21-14 and 21-12.
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It was a victory the country had long waited for.
Badminton is easily Indonesia's best sport and expectations are always high. In previous Olympic Games, the country has won six golds in the sport, but at London 2012 it saw none. In the women's doubles an Indonesian pair suffered the embarassment of disqualification for "not using one's best efforts" to win along with a duo from China and two from South Korea, after teams tried to manipulate the draw.
This years success has banished those memories and also nabbed Indonesia its first gold at the Rio Games, along with two silvers in weightlifting.
Tontowi and Natsir earns Gold medals
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Ahmad and Liliyanaracedto a 10-3 lead in the first set, which left their counterparts with a mountain to climb. The second set wasnt as straightforward at first, after Chan and Goh rallied, but the Indonesians shut them down to close out a dominant win.
Athletes in action
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Both Tontowi and Liliyanaspoke to the media after the memorable match. Tontowi said, I feel speechless. I cannot say anything. Im overwhelmed. For this medal I would like to thank God, my family, my kids, my parents, the citizens of Indonesia, the coach and everyone who has been supporting us along the way.
His partner Natsir said that I feel relieved, proud, happy; I dont know anymore. Its just an outstanding feeling. Although I am experienced, I was very stressed and under pressure in the earlier points. I tried to relax and enjoy the game so we could go on and win it.
The triumph has earned both athletes a bonus of Rp 5 billion ($376,000) and a monthly pension allowance of Rp 20 million each for the rest of their lives. Congratulations!