"The world will get to know Indonesia better” - Rifda Irfanaluthfi after becoming the first Indonesian gymnast to qualify for the Olympics
A celebrated spot in Indonesia's sporting folklore awaits Rifda Irfanaluthfi as she becomes the nation's first-ever gymnast to qualify for the Olympics. As the world gears up to bask in the glory and prestige of the upcoming games in Paris, the 24-year-old from Jakarta beams with optimism and realizes the magnitude of her achievement and what it can do for the greater good of her country.
"There is a feeling of excitement. I hope that by qualifying for the Olympics, the world will get to know Indonesia better," Rifda Irfanaluthfi told AFP on the sidelines of her training session.
For Rifda, the path to success has not always been smooth sailing. Her troubled relationship with injuries has been a thorn right through for her to negate and overcome. Also, Indonesia, a country primarily focused on badminton, does not have a national training center for gymnastics, which makes her achievement shine even brighter.
"I am also feeling worried because of injuries, it made me have insomnia for the last five days. I continue to practice, and I prove that with limited facilities I can be a successful athlete," said Rifda.
It was back in October of last year that at the 2023 FIG Antwerp Gymnastics World Championships in Belgium, the athlete found out about her qualifying for the Olympics in a bittersweet moment.
Having injured her knee during the event, it was on the next day that she was informed of her need for surgery. However, at that same moment, she was also told that her performance on the previous day had ensured her a ticket to the Paris Olympics.
"I kept asking my manager, my coach and my friends. I texted them one by one to ask: Did I qualify?" Rifda Irfanaluthfi told Reuters. "At the time I was crying, hugging my coach. My coach told me that finally our struggle from 2015 had become a reality."
Rifda Irfanaluthfi: A born athlete destined for glory
Rifda Irfanaluthfi showed glimpses of her athletic genius right from the time she was a child. Swimming, diving, and sport climbing were among the many sports she did well in before falling in love with gymnastics. A medal to her name at a junior championship in Singapore as an eight-year-old gave the young star and her family a clear direction to follow and laid down a path for her to achieve future accolades as a gymnast.
Now preparing to make her Olympic debut on July 28th in the women's artistic gymnastics competition at the Bercy Arena, Rifda wants to set an example for young athletes back home in Indonesia to go out and achieve their dreams.
"This is not for me alone. I want to motivate everyone, especially young athletes, not only for artistic gymnastics, but in other sports as well that have never qualified for the olympics. I want to tell them that if I can do it, then you can too," she told Reuters.