Gold Medal As Redemption

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Eko Yuli Irawan

Eko Yuli Irawan, 29, has proven age is not an obstacle. After making history by garnering three medals in three Olympics, Eko secured a gold medal in the 2018 Asian Games. He is now eyeing a gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Eko Yuli has been waiting for the chance to nab gold at the Asian Games for over eight years. Competing for the first time at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games and 2014 Incheon Asian Games, Eko was only able to grab bronze medals in those competitions. Only after competing in front of an Indonesian audience that included President Joko Widodo at Hall A JIExpo in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, on Tuesday (21/8/2018) did Eko prove himself to be Asia’s best lifter.

Eko’s success was a thirst quencher for the weightlifting team that was expecting to earn a gold medal. During its participation in the Asian Games, Indonesia only collected 7 silver and 15 bronze medals. In the Olympics, Indonesia has also earned medals since the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. However, the gold medal had always eluded competitors.

A week before the Asian Games opening, Indonesian Weightlifting Association (PABBSI) chairman Rosan Perkasa Roeslani said the success in the Asian Games would be used as momentum to grab gold in the Olympics.

After the Asian Games, Eko’s capacity would be tested first during the World Weightlifting Championship, which is a qualification event for the Olympics, in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan in November.

Eko said he hoped the government would help him succeed in the 2020 Olympics. “We hope there will be more serious attention from the government toward weightlifting athletes, especially in relation to nutrition. As we age it is harder to reduce bodyweight. Doing so requires serious attention to the nutritional side and body recovery to prevent injury,” he said.

Eko’s journey to grab the gold medal at the Games was not easy. He had been previously hospitalized for typhoid. As a result, he was absent from the national training for a month in February. At that time, many were skeptical Eko would recover soon.

While he had not totally recovered, new came that the 62-kilogram category had been removed from the Asian Games. The removal was made following the decision of the IWF to reduce the categories from eight to seven.

Following the decision, there had been consideration that Eko would compete in the higher category, which is the 69-kg category. Eko said competing in the 69-kg category was more reasonable than in the 56-kg.

“Personally, I am more comfortable in the 62-kg category. There is a chance to win the gold medal,” Eko said at that time.

Reducing his bodyweight has been a challenge for Eko. For Eko to ensure he could compete in the 62-kg category he needed to adhere to a strict diet, which could affect his strength.

The removal of the 62-kg category made the Youth and Sports Ministry, the Indonesia Asian Games Organizing Committee (Inasgoc), the Indonesian Olympics Committee (KOI) and PABBSI irritated. After lobbying the Asia Olympics Council (OCA), Asia Weightlifting Federation (AWF) and International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), the 62-kg category was then reinstated.

Yesterday, after grabbing the gold medal at Asian Games, Eko thanked all sides that had lobbied to reinstate the 62-kg category. “This medal is redemption for all parties that have struggled for the [62 kg] category,” he said.

With the victory, Eko made up for his defeat at the hands of Trinh Van Vinh at the SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur in 2017. The Vietnamese lifter surprisingly surpassed Eko’s lift and grabbed the gold medal with a 1-kg lift gap. Van Vinh’s total lift was 307-kg while Eko’s was 306-kg.

Belief

Eko’s will to grab the gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games was seen when Kompas met with him at the athlete’s restroom, two hours before the competition started at 2 p.m. Eko appeared fresh and relaxed. He said he had woken up before sunrise. After praying at dawn, he weighed himself. Eko was excited because his weight was 62-kg. He skipped breakfast in order to maintain his weight. He did not even drink a single drop of water.

At midday, or two hours before the competition, Eko and other participants weighed in. Then, Eko enjoyed his lunch, consisting of carbohydrates and protein. He also ate an apple, banana, chocolate and a nutritional drink.

Such a condition was far different from when Eko competed in previous international championships. Usually, in the night and morning before the competition, Eko would have to diet and sit in a sauna to reduce his bodyweight.

The difficulty to reduce bodyweight often makes Eko’s wife Masitoh nervous. “Before a championship, I always ask Mas Eko if his bodyweight has decreased. If he is limp because of the sauna for hours,” he said before the Asian Games.

Eko grabbed the gold medal at Asian Games after booking a total lift of 311-kg (snatch 141 kg, clean and jerk 170 kg). Vietnamese lifter Van Vinh collected the silver medal after booking total 299 kg (snatch 133 kg, clean and jerk 166 kg). Adkhamjon Ergashev of Uzbekistan grabbed bronze medal after lifting 298 kg (snatch 136 kg, clean and jerk 162 kg).

The rivalry between Eko and Van Vinh was visible from the beginning of the competition when both lifters were in Group A. The group division was made through registration of total lifting to the jury during the technical meeting on Sunday (19/8/2018) afternoon.

Performing relaxed, confident and with perfect technique, Eko dominated the weightlifting arena. On the snatch lift, Eko emerged as the strongest by lifting 141-kg. Eko’s lift was 8-kg more than Van Vinh’s.

Immediately after the jury declared his lift was correct, Eko dumped the barbell. Then, he waved his hand to the spectators, including the weightlifting manager Alamsyah Wijaya and IWF research and training committee member Aveenash Pandoo, who was involved in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Being left behind in the snatch lift, Van Vinh enthusiastically attempted to pay it off at the clean and jerk lift. He increased the extreme barbell to 13 kg, from 166 kg to 179 kg. But, the Vietnamese lifter’s hand was twisted and dropped the barbell.

Eko grabbed the gold medal and cheered up. He was excited with teary eyes. Dirdja, along with coaches Muljianto, Erwin Abdullah, Rusli, Zulkarnaen and Supeni, hugged the lifter. “Finally, we grab the gold medal,” Eko shouted.

That is the result from the hard work of the real champion.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Eko Yuli Irawan

Born: Metro, Lampung, July 24, 1989

Parents: Salman (father), Wastinah (morther)

Wife: Masitoh

Children: Naycilla Salsabila Irawan (4)

Achievements: Gold Medal at SEA Games 2007 (56 kg), 2009, 2011, 2013 (62 kg); Bronze Medal at Asian Games 2010, 2014 (62 kg); Bronze Medal at 2008 Olympics (56 kg); Bronze Medal at 2012 Olympics (62kg); Silver Medal at 2016 Olympics (62 kg); Junior World Champion 2007 (56 kg); Silver Medal at World Championship 2009 (62 kg); Bronze Medal at World Championship 2011 (62 kg); Silver Medal at World Championship 2014 (62 kg); Silver Medal at SEA Games 2017 (62 kg); Gold Medal at Asian Games 2018 (62 kg)