JAKARTA: Indonesians celebrated their country’s first Olympic gold medal in a sport other than badminton, won by Veddriq Leonardo in the inaugural men’s speed climbing event in Paris on Thursday.
Veddriq climbed to a personal best time of 4.75 to beat Chinese rival Wu Peng by just two hundredths of a second on the 15-meter wall.
The 27-year-old former world record holder secured the ninth Olympic gold medal in Indonesia’s history, the other eight all being won in badminton, much to the delight of fans and his family.
“Words can hardly express how we feel. Praise be to God,” his mother Rosita Hamzah told broadcaster Kompas TV.
She said Veddriq called her on Wednesday night to ask her to pray for him before she watched his climb from home in Indonesia with other relatives.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo was among the first to congratulate Veddriq.
“The Paris 2024 Olympics has brought new pride to Indonesia, thanks to Veddriq Leonardo, our proud speed climbing athlete, who secured Indonesia’s first gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics,” Widodo wrote on social media platform X.
“Congratulations!“
It was the inaugural individual men’s medal for the separate event of speed climbing, after it had been integrated into a combination of speed, bouldering and lead at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“I am proud, very proud. The excitement was explosive,” Kristoforus Bagaskoro, a 41-year-old creative manager in the capital Jakarta, told AFP.
“We should hype up this sport more and help it develop even more.”
The Southeast Asian archipelago has become an unlikely force in speed climbing, smashing records and nabbing multiple medals at top international events.
Veddriq has led that charge, his father saying his son’s enthusiasm for the exciting sport began after he joined a student group of nature enthusiasts that included wall climbing as an activity.
“He really enjoys the sport. It has always been his dream,” his father Sumaryanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told Kompas TV.
Veddriq’s coach broke down in tears after the victory and Indonesian Sport Climbing Federation chairwoman Yenni Wahid said she was “so moved I could cry.”
Others hoped Indonesia would secure more climbing success and enjoyed Veddriq’s enthusiastic celebrations in Paris.
“He kept kissing the medal, and he couldn’t stop smiling. He looked like he had been relieved from a heavy burden,” 30-year-old Indonesian Annisa Balqis wrote on X.
“Hopefully after this, he will be even more enthusiastic about winning.”
Indonesians delight at first speed climbing Olympic gold
https://arab.news/c5tfm
Indonesians delight at first speed climbing Olympic gold
- Veddriq climbed to a personal best time of 4.75 to beat Chinese rival Wu Peng by just two hundredths of a second on the 15-meter wall
- “Words can hardly express how we feel. Praise be to God,” his mother Rosita Hamzah told broadcaster Kompas TV
Arsenal host Chelsea, looking to maintain lead in EPL
- “Well, I think one thing leads to another,” explained Gunners manager Mikel Arteta
- Rosenior said: “The Premier League is so difficult every week”
LONDON: Arsenal will look to move another step closer to their first Premier League title in 22 years Sunday when they host a Chelsea side managing its own improved run of form under new manager Liam Rosenior.
The Gunners (18-3-7, 61 points) maintained their five-point lead over Manchester City with an emphatic 4-1 win at Tottenham Hotspur last Sunday, though City still possess a match in hand.
Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyokeres each had a brace as Arsenal pulled away following a first half that ended tied at 1-1.
The performance took Gyokeres to 10 league goals in his first English campaign after his move from Sporting Lisbon this summer. Five of those have come in the Sweden international’s last five league appearances.
“Well, I think one thing leads to another,” explained Gunners manager Mikel Arteta. “When you score the first one, the performance is good, you have more time with your teammates, you understand the games, the opponents, the league better, everything helps.”
The result stretched Arsenal’s winning run to five matches in the North London Derby and their unbeaten streak to eight. Against Chelsea, the Gunners have gone 10 unbeaten while winning seven in all competitions, including both legs of their EFL Cup semifinal in November and January.
But fifth-place Chelsea (12-6-9, 45 points) have looked improved under incoming manager Rosenior, even if the decision to replace Enzo Maresca caught most off guard.
The Blues have posted an 8-2-2 mark under his direction in all competitions, with those EFL Cup losses the only defeats. In the league, Chelsea have taken 14 points from six games, a pace that would see them above Arsenal if it were extended over the whole season.
Still, they begin three points behind Manchester United in the quest for the final UEFA Champions League spot next season. And it may get tougher from here, with Aston Villa, Newcastle and a round-of-16 UCL clash with Paris Saint-Germain looming.
Rosenior doesn’t see it that way.
“The Premier League is so difficult every week. Every week, the challenges that you face, the different tactical problems that you have, the physicality of the league, I don’t judge one game as harder than the other,” he said. “For me, I’m happy with this group, I’m happy with the start that we’ve made. We’ve won eight out of 12, it should be 10 out of 12. That’s not bad.”
Rosenior also confirmed captain Reece James will be available after the defensive midfielder sustained a minor injury in last weekend’s 1-1 draw against Burnley.
