Keep On Running, Lalu

GETTY IMAGES FOR IAAF/CHARLIE CROWHURST

Lalu Muhammad Zohri of Indonesia celebrates winning the gold medal in the final of the men\'s 100-m on day two of The IAAF World U20 Championships on July 11, 2018 in Tampere, Finland.

Thanks to his success in winning gold in the 2018 IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland, Lalu Muhammad Zohri, 18, has been the talk of the entire nation. Even President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo himself has congratulated him.

Almost everyone is astonished that the teenager, whose victory made history and brought national pride, hails from a poor family.

Lalu is an orphan who lives with his older brother Baiq Fazillah in West Pemenang village, North Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. His mother Saeriah died on February 2, 2015. His father Lalu Ahmad Yani followed two years later to the day.

Lalu and Baiq live in a modest, 6 by 8-square-meter hut that their parents left behind. The hut has walls made of woven bamboo and roof from tiles and asbestos sheets. The roof has holes in several places. The hut is in the middle of a village and you need to go through narrow alleyways to reach it.

Lalu, the youngest of four siblings, has been living in poverty since he was a child. With his parents’ paltry income as  fisherman and farm worker, the family often could not buy meals.

ANTARA FOTO/AHMAD SUBAIDI

Children check out the collection of medals belonging to sprinter Lalu Mohammed Zohri at his home in Karang Pangsor Hamlet, Pemenang Barat, Pemenang, Tanjung, North Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Friday (13/7/2018).

Amid the family’s financial constraints, Lalu was known for his running skills even as a small boy. Since he was still a student at SD 2 Pemenang state elementary school, he often ran between his home and his school, 2 kilometers away.

It was his sports teacher Rosida at SMPN 1 Pemenang state junior high school who saw his potential and helped him hone it. “Ibu Rosida guided me and continued to remind me to train myself in athletics,” Lalu recalled.

Rosida spent her time training him to improve his start position, his posture ahead of the finish line and his warm-ups. Rosida told Lalu that he should be disciplined and passionate.

Lalu heeded the advice. Every morning before school, Lalu prayed at dawn and ran along Bangsal Beach in Pemenang village, around 1-kilometer from his house, between 5 and 7 a.m. After school, he ran from 4 to 6 p.m.

Under Rosida’s guidance, Lalu won gold in the 100-meter run at the 2015 regional students’ athletics championships at Turida Sports Stadium, Mataram. There, he drew the attention of the West Nusa Tenggara Education and Culture Agency, who told him to join the Students’ Sports Training Center (PPLP) in Mataram.

PB PASI DOCUMENT

The new Indonesian quartet win the number 4 x 100 meter race in one of the championships at UCLA Drake Stadium, Los Angeles, California, on Saturday (14/4/2018) United States time. Bayu Kertanegara (from left), Fadlin, Eko and Lalu Muhammad Zohri pose for a photograph with Allyson Felix, a leading American sprinter who won 3 gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics.

In his first year at the PPLP, Lalu won three golds, two silvers and one bronze in 100-meter, 200-meter and 4x100-meter-relay runs in the West Nusa Tenggara Youth Athletics Championship and the 2017 National Inter-PPLP Athletics Championships. In the 2017 National Students Games (Popnas) in Semarang, Lalu won golds in 100-meter and 200-meter runs.

Afterward, Lalu was told to join the national training camp (Pelatnas) of the Indonesian Athletics Association (PB PASI). Soon after, he joined Pelatnas for the 2018 Asian Games. In Pelatnas, he was under the guidance of coaches Eny Sumartoyo and Erwin Maspaitela. IAAF’s 2016 world’s top coach Harry Mara from the US, who the PB PASI invited to train at Pelatnas, helped Lalu improve his technique.

Lalu’s training at Pelatnas is beginning to bear fruit. Before he finished his run with 10.18 seconds in the men’s 100-meter race in Finland, Lalu had clinched gold at the 2018 Asian Junior Athletics Championships, where he finished in 10.27 seconds.

Shower of praise

Lalu is being showered with praise after his achievement in Finland, including from the general public, regents, governors, ministers and even the President. All expressed how proud they were of him.

“I am proud, we are all proud, all Indonesians are proud of [Lalu] M Zohri’s achievement,” President Jokowi said during a visit to Palembang on Friday (13/7).

KOMPAS/KHAERUL ANWAR

A total of 12 medals belonging to Lalu Muhammad Zohri from various athletic championship competitions at home and abroad.

As a form of appreciation, the President said he had ordered the Public Works and Housing Minister to visit Lombok and repair Lalu’s home. A number of state officials have also promised to provide housing for Lalu.

Apart from the home renovation promise, the President also said he would invite Lalu to the State Palace. “This is an expression of Indonesian pride,” President Jokowi said.

According to him, Lalu’s achievement can boost the spirit of athletes who will compete in the Asian Games. “This will be a good start toward clinching gold in the 100-meter-run,” he said.

Amid the shower of praise, Lalu graciously said he would remain committed toward bringing pride for the nation. “I will still be my old self. Nothing will change except that I will train harder. I will continue to pray for my parents,” Lalu told Kompas on Friday evening.

Lalu must not be complacent with all the praise and appreciation he has received. At 18 years old, he still has his whole life ahead of him. He needs to keep on running to achieve his dream of becoming the world’s fastest man.

(NIC/RUL/RAM/NTA/DNA)