Two Koreas march together as Asian Games burst into life

Yahoo – AFP, Faisal KAMAL, August 18, 2018

The two Koreas also marched together at this year's Pyeongchang Winter
Olympics opening ceremony. (AFP Photo/CHAIDEER MAHYUDDIN)

North and South Korea marched together in a stirring display of unity as the Asian Games, one of the world's biggest sports events, opened in a blaze of colour in Jakarta on Saturday.

South Korean women's basketball player Lim Yung-hui and North Korean footballer Ju Kyong-chol jointly held the Korean Unification flag aloft as they led the athletes out to an ovation from the packed crowd.

It is the second such symbolic gesture this year by the two Koreas, who also walked together at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics opening ceremony -- an event that heralded an unprecedented warming of ties.

The North and South, still technically at war, are joining forces in women's basketball, canoeing and rowing during the 40-sport, two-week regional Olympics in the Indonesian capital and Palembang, a port city on Sumatra island.

South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon and North Korean Deputy Prime Minister Ri Ryong-nam, watching from the VIP seats, rose together holding hands and beaming as the Korean athletes marched.

The ceremony opened with a skit purportedly showing President Joko Widodo doing stunts on a motorbike in Jakarta's streets before riding into the Gelora Bung Karno stadium, to roars from the crowd.

About 1,500 dancers in traditional dress then performed a tightly choreographed routine before Afghanistan led the athletes' parade into the stadium.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo declared the Games open. (AFP 

Photo/Jewel SAMAD)

There were huge cheers when the two Koreas, whose athletes together number about 1,000, marched into the stadium together wearing pristine white and blue uniforms.

'You can feel proud'

Widodo was then seen dancing in his seat as Indonesian singer Via Vallen took to the stage, before the stadium fell silent to honour the victims of the recent Lombok earthquake.

"You can feel proud of your home country Indonesia," said Sheikh Ahmed Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, president of the Olympic Council of Asia, before Widodo declared the Games open.

Indonesian badminton great Susi Susanti, the women's singles Olympic champion in 1992, lit the Games cauldron and the ceremony closed with a noisy music performance and spectacular fireworks.

It provided a vibrant start to the Games, whose build-up has been dogged by logistical headaches and security fears after Indonesia suffered its deadliest terror attack in a decade in May.

The sprawling archipelago has also been grappling with its latest earthquake disaster after strong tremors in Lombok, an eastern island, left more than 400 people dead.

Indonesia, a country of about 270 million, stepped in to host the Games at short notice after Vietnam pulled out, citing the event's eye-watering costs.

Indonesia is hosting one of the world's biggest sporting events. (AFP 

Photo/BAY ISMOYO)

Indonesia has a poor track record in hosting multi-sports events -- the 2011 Southeast Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang suffered serious corruption problems and delays, and two people died in a stadium stampede.

Rights group Amnesty International said at least 31 people were killed in a "shoot first and ask questions later" police crackdown on petty crime.

But officials say all venues are ready for competition and tournament-related problems so far have been relatively minor, from the ticket website crashing to misspelt words on signs.

About 18,000 athletes and officials from 45 Asian countries will be at the Asiad, organisers said, looking to make their mark across a range of sports from swimming to sepak takraw and bridge.

The Asian Games encompass nearly the full Olympic programme and are considered the pinnacle by many participating nations, for whom Olympic success often proves elusive.

Indonesia is about to open the #AsianGames but its traffic-clogged capital Jakarta remains shrouded in a toxic haze of air pollution, despite drastic efforts to cut down on congestion https://t.co/ukFXJoXVIl pic.twitter.com/qVoOaPt9LO

— AFP news agency (@AFP) August 17, 2018

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Science & Spiritually Conference 2018, BC – Canada (4), June 16-17, 2018 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Predictions - Text version) - New 

"The second thing I told you about was this: There's a 50% chance that the new leader of North Korea, the son, would not follow in the footsteps of his father. I told you there was a 50% chance of this. Then I started itemizing the reasoning why this might make sense, especially to the Korean leader. I then told you it might take a long time if it manifested at all. I told you the problems would be within the old advisors for his father's family. He had to tread slowly and lightly to do something against all odds. This will all come out someday because of the handshake.

Here was the potential or the prediction of what might happen: Those who had the machine guns in the DM zone would drop them, because this North Korean leader would unify the two Koreas. There would be no nuclear weapons in his land and there would be the beginning of abundance for his people. His people and the world would then give him something he had always wanted and was imbued with from birth - the desire for accolades and more accolades. Like his father before him, he was the premier egotist, and this would be the unexpected way to create a world at his feet. That's what I said. Then I said, "Watch for it, but don't be anxious." I talked about that in 2013, and five more times since then. In August 2017, I itemized my advice for him, point by point. The advice that I gave followed the potentials that were there and those were the very points in the handshake this week in June of 2018.

Now, you tell me what happened. "Kryon, you're going to be famous because you predicted these things!" Dear ones, all I did was look into a field that is being shown to you today [by the scientists at the conference]. And all I did was to show you the potentials that were already there. In other words, he was thinking about these things and talking to others behind the scenes about them. No matter what his advisors told him right up to the brink of sending his missiles, he was always thinking that there might be another way that would gain him ultimate fame. Dear ones, this has been in progress since his father died! Therefore, it was in the field, but not a given, dear ones - a potential.

Next, I want to show you the bias of humanity at this time, something I have spoken of many times. This potential of the handshake is amazing, and it has started to be manifested. What should the reaction be to something that deflects the potential of war, or saves thousands lives? Instead of joy or amazement or celebration, Humans go for the reverse: It can't happen. It's a trick. It's a bad deal.

I want you to start reading the reactions of the press. I want you to read the reactions even from the South Koreans. They said, "Well, we know North Koreans, and that's never going to happen. We know who they are, and we know their nature. Because in the past, they never performed what they said they would. So it's a joke." That is a quote from a South Korean. "It's a joke."

What happened to this comment? "Isn't this a beautiful potential? Look at this amazing thing - against all odds!" Now, your free press, the reporting segment of our culture, has decided not only to report it, but to let you know it's probably not going to happen! They say: "Nay. Maybe yes, maybe no. We'll see. We expect the worse." And this continues and continues, and all it shows you is the monstrous bias of the dark side that wants to pull anything good back to what the past gave to you."

Asian Games could have 7 joint Korean teams: Seoul official

Yahoo – AFP, Sunghee Hwang, Apr 30, 2018

The sight of North and South Korean skaters wearing the same jersey drew emotive
 responses from spectators and quickly became a Wintern Olympic favourite (AFP
Photo/Brendan Smialowski)

Seoul (AFP) - Seven South Korean sports associations are considering forming joint teams with North Korea for this year's Asian Games in Indonesia, an official told AFP Monday - but reports said football will not be joining them.

At their groundbreaking summit on Friday, the latest step in a rapidly moving diplomatic sequence, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the South's president Moon Jae-in agreed to show solidarity by "jointly participating in international sports events such as the 2018 Asian Games".

The phrasing left open whether it was a reference to unified teams, or marching together at opening ceremonies, as they have done at several past Olympics, including this year's Winter Games in Pyeongchang in the South.

But a spokeswoman for the South's national Olympic committee told AFP that the country's governing bodies for "basketball, judo, canoe, gymnastics, table tennis, rowing and soft tennis have expressed interest".

No details had been discussed yet, she added.

Seoul's unification ministry declined to comment on the issue but said the two sides will soon hold a working-level meeting which may include discussions on joint teams at the Asian Games.

Some sports bodies are already pushing ahead, proposing their own plans for the Asian Games, which will take place in Jakarta and Palembang from August 18 to September 2.

The Korean Canoe Federation said Monday a joint team for the dragon boat race -- one of three canoe disciplines at the event -- will be a good idea since neither Korea has a national team for it.

"Even if we form a joint team, it won't affect any existing athletes," the group said in a statement.

The joint teams could hold open practice sessions on the Han river in Seoul as well as the Taedong river in Pyongyang, it added.

Final whistle

But the South's football association declined the idea, Yonhap news agency reported, saying the move could require unwanted sacrifices from its players.

In South Korea, male athletes who win gold at the Asian Games or any Olympic medal are exempted from the country's mandatory two-year military service.

Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min could be among the players seeking the Asian Games title to enable him to extend his career in Europe without interruptions.

Son withdrew from consideration for the South Korean team for London 2012 -- when the side finished third, earnings its members the exemption -- to concentrate on his club activities with Hamburg SV.

When a joint women's ice hockey team was first mooted for the Winter Olympics it provoked a backlash in the South, on the grounds that Seoul was depriving its own athletes of the chance to compete on the Olympic stage.

Ultimately the sight of North and South Korean skaters wearing the same jersey and passing the puck to each other drew emotive responses from spectators and quickly became an Olympic favourite, despite the team being thrashed in all five of their matches.

The rapprochement on the peninsula was triggered by the Games, to which the North's Kim sent athletes, cheerleaders and his sister as an envoy.

Friday's historic meeting saw Kim and Moon agree to pursue the complete denuclearisation of the peninsula and to improve inter-Korean relations.

Seoul's defence ministry said Monday it will start removing propaganda loudspeakers along the border with the North on Tuesday.

South and North Korea consider joint teams for this year's Asian Games in Indonesia https://t.co/mRJFvWPlqz pic.twitter.com/4lNa2zmPGZ

— AFP news agency (@AFP) April 30, 2018

National Paralympics Week Kicks Off in Bandung

Jakarta Globe, Amal Ganesha, October 17, 2016

The official opening ceremony of the 15th National Paralympics Week
 (Peparnas XV) took place in Bandung, West Java, on Saturday (15/10)
 (Photo courtesy of Sports Ministry)

Jakarta. The official opening ceremony of the 15th National Paralympics Week, or Peparnas XV, took place in Bandung, West Java, on Saturday (15/10).

The event is a complementary part of the 19th National Sports Week (PON XIX), which was hosted by the city last month.

"We treat athletes with disabilities equally — they also promoted Indonesia during the Rio 2016 Paralympics and brought home a bronze medal," Sports Minister Imam Nahrawi said during the opening ceremony at Bandung's Siliwangi Stadium.

"The government provides incentives and bonuses to both Paralympic and Olympic athletes," he added.

West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan, as chairman of Peparnas, wants to ensure the legacy of the national sporting event during his leadership.

"We expect this year's Peparnas to be the best event of its kind," he said, as quoted on the Sports Ministry's official website.

The event will see competitions in 13 sport disciplines, with 2,000 athletes from 32 provinces competing for 2,737 medals. The closing ceremony is scheduled for Oct. 24.

Rio 2016: Mixed Doubles Tontowi and Liliyana Present Gold on Independence Day

Jakarta Globe, Amal Ganesha, August 18, 2016

Indonesian gold medalists, Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir, pose as if
biting their medals. (Reuters Photo/Mike Blake)

Jakarta. Indonesia has finally secured its first gold at Rio de Janeiro Olympics 2016 after badminton's mixed doubles pair Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir crushed Malaysia's Goh Liu Ying and Chan Peng Soon, in a victory dubbed as the best "gift" for the country's independence day on August 17.

Tontowi and Liliyana won in a straight game of 21-14 and 21-12, dominantly attacking with typical high speed tempo and powerful smashes, making the Malaysians seemed inferior to the world's number three before closing the game in less than one hour.

Supported by more than 100 Indonesian fans dressed in red and white and banging noisemaker sticks, the hyper-aggressive Tontowi repeatedly smashed through Goh and Chan's defenses, with Lilyana almost impregnable at the net.

Malaysia have waited 52 years for an Olympic champion in badminton, but their hopes of breaking the drought were extinguished by the rampant Indonesian pair.

Badminton - Mixed Doubles - Gold Medal Match

Good Teamwork

The Indonesian pair showed tactical advantages with good task specialization on the field. Liliyana covered at front with her unique intercept smashes and flat balls, as Tontowi covered the back with his powerful jump smashes and lobs.

The Malaysians were mostly overwhelmed by Tontowi's smashes from the back, as well as his clever drop-shots -- which were equally effective.

In the first set, Tontowi and Liliyana went very aggressive, leaving their opponents 10 points behind whilst the game just reached 15 minutes. They finished the first set with a confident 21-14.

The Malaysians had then surrendered the second set meekly with only 12 points, with Goh netting on the final point and triggered frenetic celebrations for the Indonesians around the arena.

Badminton - Mixed Doubles - Gold Medal Match

Speaking after the game, Liliyana expressed her relief after the high pressure she received during the Olympics.

"I still couldn't believe it [the gold], this is the gold for Indonesia's independence day," she said. "I want to take a break and enjoy this win first. Honestly, there has been high pressure on us during this [Olympic] event."

The pair will be granted Rp 5 billion ($380,000) bonus after the gold, as Tontowi said he will use it for his children.

"This is the most beautiful gift, thanks to all coaches!" Tontowi said after the game. "I never think of it [the bonus], but yes, I want to save it for my kids."

Badminton - Mixed Doubles - Gold Medal Match

Chan and Goh were philosophical about the loss, having enjoyed an excellent tournament in which they upset the reigning Chinese champions in the semi-finals.

"I feel this is tremendous for our country, because not one single Malaysian pair has won any medal in the mixed doubles, so we have already made history," said Goh.

First Gold For Mixed Doubles

Indonesia's badminton's mixed doubles had never achieved gold in previous Olympics, as the current victory marked its first, the federation chairman revealed.

"20 years in the making: 1st mixed doubles Olympic gold for Indonesia. Special for Indonesia's 71 anniversary," Indonesia badminton federation PBSI chairman Gita Wirjawan cheered via his Twitter account after the win.

20 years in the making: 1st mixed doubles #Olympic gold for #INA. Special for #RI71.

— Gita Wirjawan (@GWirjawan) August 17, 2016

The tradition of gold from badminton was often earned from men's doubles, with last achieved by Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. However, Tontowi and Liliyana's victory has indeed been all sorts of the first.

Beside the badminton's gold medal, Indonesia also earns two silvers from weightlifting after Sri Wahyuni Agustiani and Eko Yuli Irawan came in second in their respective classes.

Indonesia has sent 28 athletes from seven sports to compete in Rio Olympics, with most coming from badminton. The country's only chance to add more medals now lies in the hands of BMX rider Toni Syarifudin, who has just started his race.

Indonesian Para-Swimmer Breaks World Record

Jakarta Globe, Oct 24, 2014

Indonesian para-swimmer Mulyana.
(JG Photo)

Jakarta. Indonesian swimmer Mulyana on Thursday broke the world record in the men’s 50 meters butterfly S4 event at the Asian Para Games.

Mulyana posted a record 39.44 seconds on the distance to win a gold medal at the games in Incheon, South Korea. He was 1.04 second faster than Slovenian Darko Duric at the London Paralympics in 2012.

The S4 category is for swimmers with coordination problems affecting all limbs but predominantly in the legs.

Thailand’s Somchai Doungkaew took second place with a time of 46.41 and third place was for China’s Jin Zhipeng (59.75).

Indonesian Steven Sualang Tangkilisan won silver in the men’s 100 meter backstroke S10 (below the elbow or below the knee amputees). He finished in 1 minute and 9.94 seconds. China’s Lin Furong took first place with 1:08.74 and Fraidden Dawan of Malaysia came in third with 1:10.63.

In the women’s -79kg powerlifting, paralympian Ni Nengah Widiasih lifted a total of 90 kilograms to bag a bronze. Taiwan’s Lin Tzu-Hui topped the standing by posting a total of 103kg to win gold. Jordanian Tharwh Tayseer Hamdan Alhajaj finished second with 108kg.

Indonesia has so far collected nine gold medals, nine silver, and 17 bronzes at this year’s Asian Para Games.

‘Japan’s Beethoven’ Admits Using Ghost Composer

Jakarta Globe – AFP, February 5, 2014

Deaf composer Mamoru Samuragoch in

 Hiroshima, western Japan in December 2013.

(AFP Photo/Jiji Press)

A deaf composer dubbed Japan’s Beethoven confessed Wednesday to hiring someone to write his most iconic works, leaving duped broadcaster NHK red-faced, and casting a cloud over a figure skater set to dance to his music in Sochi.

Mamoru Samuragochi, 50, shot to fame in the mid-1990s with classical compositions that provided the soundtrack to video games including Resident Evil, despite having had a degenerative condition that affected his hearing.

Samuragochi, who also spells his name Samuragoch, became completely deaf at the age of 35 but continued to work, notably producing “Symphony No.1, Hiroshima,” a tribute to those killed in the 1945 atomic bombing of the city.

In 2001 Time magazine published an interview with him, calling him a “digital-age Beethoven.”

“I listen to myself,” Samuragochi told the magazine. “If you trust your inner sense of sound, you create something that is truer. It is like communicating from the heart. Losing my hearing was a gift from God.”

His reputation grew when public broadcaster NHK aired a documentary in March last year entitled “Melody of the Soul,” in which it showed the musician touring the tsunami-battered Tohoku region to meet survivors and those who lost relatives in the 2011 catastrophe.

The film shows Samuragochi playing with a small girl whose mother was killed in the disaster and apparently composing a requiem for her, despite his own struggles with illness.

Viewers flocked in their tens of thousands to buy his Hiroshima piece, which became an anthemic tribute to the tsunami-hit region’s determination to get back on its feet, known informally as the symphony of hope.

But on Wednesday morning the composer’s life was revealed to have been a fraud, and an NHK anchor offered a fulsome apology for having aired the documentary.

“Through his lawyer, Mamoru Samuragochi confessed early Wednesday that he had asked another composer to create his iconic works,” said the anchor.

“NHK has reported on him in news and features programs but failed to realize that he had not composed the works himself, despite our research and checking.”

The statement, seen by AFP, offered an unqualified mea culpa.

“Samuragochi is deeply sorry as he has betrayed fans and disappointed others. He knows he could not possibly make any excuse for what he has done,” it said.

The broadcaster quoted Samuragochi as saying his deception had begun nearly two decades ago.

“I started hiring the person to compose music for me around 1996, when I was asked to make movie music for the first time,” he said. “I had to ask the person to help me for more than half the work because the ear condition got worse.”

He paid for the commission, said NHK, adding the real composer, whom it has not identified, has not yet responded to requests for comment.

Japanese Winter Olympics medal hopeful, figure skater Daisuke Takahashi, has also been caught up in the row.

Takahashi’s program in Sochi includes a dance to a sonatina allegedly composed by Samuragochi that was unveiled two years ago.

Nippon Columbia, which has sold his CDs and DVDs, said in a statement that the company was “flabbergasted and deeply infuriated” by his revelation.

“We had been assured by him that he himself composed the works,” it said.

Agence France-Presse

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Nova Peris makes emotional maiden speech in Parliament

The Sydney Morning Herald, Michael Gordon, Dan Harrison, November 2013

Senator Nova Peris delivers her maiden speech in the Senate. Photo:
Alex Ellinghausen

She is one of Australia's most decorated indigenous athletes, yet Nova Peris says she would give up the medals and accolades ''in a heartbeat'' to see Aboriginal Australians free, healthy and participating fully in all this country - their country - has to offer.

Peris (below) also says her sporting achievements are ''virtually meaningless'' when compared with the triumph over adversity of both her mother Joan and grandmother Nora. Australia's first indigenous female to be elected to the Federal Parliament told their stories in an emotional maiden speech in the Senate on Wednesday, her face painted with ochre from an ancient site in the Northern Territory.

Wearing a dress of gold silk fabric, Peris urged her fellow MPs to become champions of the push for recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the constitution.

She also vowed to expose those ''totally unscrupulous people'' who try to use the misery of some indigenous people to promote their own agendas. With her mother and other family members watching from the public gallery, Senator Peris told how Nora Peris, a proud Giga woman, was torn from her mother's arms and lived on the mission of Moola Bulla in the east Kimberley.

''When the Second World War hit, the kids were released from the mission and for two years she walked and lived off the harsh Eastern Kimberley land,'' she said.

It was there she met Johnny Peris, a Yawuru man. They had 10 children, four of whom were taken away and sent to Garden Point Mission on the Tiwi Islands.

''One of the four children who was taken and is here today is my mother, Joan Peris. She lived on the mission for eight years, she worked every day and never received a cent in pay.''

Senator Peris described herself as a fierce advocate for Aboriginal people being taught to read and write English, but added: ''Of course, we should never be forced to renounce our culture … ''

Senator Peris was overcome with emotion several times during the address, but struggled the most when she paid tribute to former prime minister Julia Gillard, who lost some support in the party when she used a ''captain's pick'' to secure Peris a winnable spot on Labor's NT Senate ticket.

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Indonesia gets bronze in Paralympics, breaking twenty years of drought

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Sports, September 03 2012

Dian David Michael Jacobs: (Antara/Yudhi Mahatma)

Indonesia grabbed a bronze medal in the 14th Paralympic Games, after twenty years of coming home empty handed.

Dian David Michael Jacobs grabbed the medal in table tennis after beating José Manuel Ruiz Reyes from Spain in the Excel center in London on Sunday night.

The 32-year-old athlete gained victory in four sets. David won the first set 11-9, but was later defeated in the second set 7-11. David managed to salvage the match by rebounding in the last two round sets, 11-5 and 11-6.

After claiming the title, David shed tears of happiness.

The National Paralympic Committee (NPC) secretary general Pribadi said that it was the first time David participated in the event.

Pribadi has proposed that the government award Rp 100 million (US$10,487) to the bronze medalist. However, the government has not yet agreed to the proposal.

"It is the best achievement of an Indonesian Paralympics team so far," said Indonesia’s chef de mission, James Tangkudung, as quoted by kompas.com.

Indonesia’s last achievement in the Paralympics was at the 1998 Toronto games where it collected two silver medals. Since its absence in 1992, the country had not won any medals. 

(yps/iwa)

Indonesia Looking to 2016 Games

Jakarta Globe, Sandy Pramuji, August 13, 2012

Indonesia's Deni Deni embraces weights celebrating a successful lift
 on the men's 69Kg Group A weightlifting competition at the ExCel venue
 at the London 2012 Olympic Games on July 31, 2012. (Reuters Photo/
Grigory Dukor)

         

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As Britain basked in the feel-good factor of its most successful Olympic performance, Indonesia and many of its Asian peers found themselves going back to the drawing board.

The London Games officially closed on Sunday with no Indonesian athletes taking part in the closing ceremony at the Olympic Stadium. All 22 athletes had returned home earlier.

Indonesia’s Olympics finished well before Sunday, with the country only earning one silver and one bronze medal in men’s weightlifting. Sprinter Fernando Lumain and marathon runner Triyaningsih were the last to compete, and they had left London last Tuesday without adding to the country’s medal count.

This year’s Olympics was one of Indonesia’s worst since making its debut at the 1952 Games in Helsinki. It failed to come home with a gold medal in badminton since the sport gained full Olympic status in 1992. Badminton had produced all six of Indonesia’s Olympic gold medals, but none of the country’s shuttlers managed to even reach the finals in London.

Mixed doubles pair Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir came in as Indonesia’s best hope but left empty-handed, losing in the semifinals before bowing out meekly in the bronze-medal match. When Indonesia did make the headlines, it was for the wrong reasons — Greysia Polii and Meiliana Jauhari were among four women’s doubles pairs disqualified for intentionally playing poorly to receive an easier quarterfinal draw.

Sports officials have offered apologies for the poor results but had few answers on how to stop Indonesia’s slide into irrelevance.

Youth and Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng suggested narrowing the country’s focus.

“We have to determine which sports need to be given priority,” he said. “We’ve been too dependent on badminton as a gold mine in the Olympics. I think we will have to pick probably five sports [as top priorities] for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janiero.”

Sports given priority would receive more funding and other support, the minister added.

He offered no other details of his plan, only saying that badminton and weightlifting would be two of the priority sports and “we’ll use a more scientific approach and technology in training our athletes.”

Weightlifting has consistently produced medals for Indonesia since the 2000 Games, when Lisa Rumbewas won silver in the women’s 48-kilogram division. Triyatno finished second in the men’s 69kg while Eko Yuli Irawan was third in the men’s 62kg.

Lukman, who coached the weightlifting team, said Indonesia’s success was down to keeping up with new training methods and paying attention to details, such as athletes’ diets.

“We’ve been introducing technology such as recording the athletes’ training with slow-motion cameras so they know what to improve,” he said.

Indonesia’s Southeast Asian peers also largely struggled in London. Thailand finished with two silvers and a bronze, a far cry from the two gold and two silver medals it won at the 2008 Games in Beijing.

While Malaysian star Lee Chong Wei had to settle for men’s singles silver, the country earned its first Olympic medal outside badminton when Pandalela Rinong won bronze in women’s 10-meter platform diving.

Asian powerhouse China could not quite emulate its stunning performance from four years ago. It finished the 2008 Games with 100 medals, including 51 gold, but it fell back slightly after leaving home soil. As of Sunday afternoon, China was second in the medals table with 87 overall — 38 gold, 27 silver and 22 bronze — while the United States was first with 46 gold, 29 silver and 29 bronze.

South Korea and Japan also fell back in the table. Iran was the only Asian nation to improve its standing, earning four gold, five silver and three bronze after winning just one gold and one bronze in Beijing.

The host nation, meanwhile, celebrated its best Olympics in a century. Great Britain racked up 29 gold medals and 64 overall to secure third place in the table, beating out Russia.

Its performance was its best since London hosted the Games in 1908. Great Britain topped the table that year with 56 gold medals and 146 overall.

Additional reporting by AP & AFP

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Belarus' Aliaksandra Herasimenia, Ranomi Kromowidjojo of the Netherlands

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Luck, Skill Spark Indonesian Swimmer's Olympic Dream

Jakarta Globe, Ami Afriatni, March 29, 2010

Indonesian swimmer Fibriani Ratna Marita hopes to build on her showing in the 2008 Beijing Olympics by winning a medal at the first Youth Olympic Games. (JG Photo/Safir Makki)

One of the oldest yarns in sports says that it is better to be lucky than good.

For athletes such as Fibriani Ratna Marita, though, it is even better to be lucky and good.

After the 16-year-old competed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she has another chance to enjoy the Olympic experience. Singapore will host the inaugural Youth Olympic Games on August 14-26, giving Fibriani the chance to become the first Indonesian to participate in two Olympics within four years.

“I’m so glad knowing that I could compete in both the senior and Youth Olympics. With the experience I got in Beijing, I’m sure I can do better in Singapore. I hope I can make it to the final and bring a medal back home,” Fibriani told the Jakarta Globe.

Her first appearance came after some good fortune. The Beijing Olympic Games Organizing Committee granted Indonesia two wild cards in swimming, which the Indonesian Swimming Association (PRSI) awarded to Donny Budiarto Utomo and Fibriani.

Fibriani finished the women’s 200-meter individual medley, her favorite event, in 2:28.18, while Donny posted a 2:03.44 in the men’s 200-meter butterfly.

She had less than a month to rest following the 2009 Southeast Asian Games, where she finished fourth in the 200 IM, before returning to the national training camp in January.

In addition to preparing for the Youth Olympics and Asian Games, Fibriani also has an education to maintain. She stays on track for graduation by undergoing home schooling with Patricia Yosita Hapsari, a fellow Youth Games qualifier, at Century Athlete Hotel in Senayan. They receive one to three hours of instruction by three teachers from Tuesday through Friday.

“I know it is hard for me to study in an ordinary school like other kids do as the training schedule is tight and does not allow me to go,” said Fibriani, who is registered as a student at SMA 8 Malang, a high school in her home town in Malang, East Java.

“Since I can’t do that, I think it’s better to call the teachers at home. They will transfer my results to the school everytime I finish my examination.”

Fibriani secured her ticket to the Youth Olympics after posting a 2:23.98 in the 200 IM preliminaries at the Singapore National Age Group Championships, a qualifying event for the Games. Her time easily beat the qualifying mark of 2:26.97. Patricia and Pratama Siahaan later joined her in the Singapore contingent.

The road to success is not without potholes, even for athletes who have shown themselves to be Indonesia’s best. With sports federations across the country facing funding shortages, national athletes must support themselves financially, and Fibriani is no exception.

She has used her own money for her daily needs and training while waiting for the government and the Indonesian National Sports Committee (KONI) to come up with athletes’ salaries.

“It’s been disturbing for me. I hope they will take care of it soon,” she said.

Some measure of help may be on the way, though. The Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI) recently announced it would provide scholarships for the country’s most promising athletes, including those who have qualified for the Youth Olympics.

“It’s one of our efforts to honor our young athletes. They will be the ones to represent us at the 2016 Olympic Games,” said Ade Lukman, head of KOI’s Cultural and Olympic Education Commission.

The scholarships, he said, will come from sponsorships and other outlets, such as the Olympic Solidarity Program from the International Olympic Committee.

“It is great to know that. I hope I can continue my study in the USA or Australia with the scholarships,” Fibriani said.

In addition to the scholarships, she can also draw on the inspiration of her idol. Swimmer Michael Phelps, who won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympics, is an ambassador for the Youth Games.

“I saw him as a participant in Beijing. Now he is coming as an ambassador. That’s great,” Fibriani said.

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