Yusuf Widiyanto, a young athlete man from Semarang, is the first athlete man from Indonesia who successfully got a gold medal from Sanda World Cup Champion 2015. He got a gold medal after he defeated Van Bau To, an athlete from Vietnam, in the final round. A competition followed by 75 countries from around the world was held in Istora Gelora Bung Karno, November 18, 2015.
Three months before the competition day, he was trained in Semarang by a special coach from China. After he was selected to be a representative of wushu athlete, he was sent to Medan and trained with a special coach again from China for a two-week short training.
“I was surprised at that time” he said.
Surprised was the first reaction after the referee lifted his hand.
“Actually, I did not expect to be the winner because I know that it was the biggest competition that I ever joined”.
The competition was the first senior international wushu competition for him. Although he has joined junior international wushu competition twice, he still felt nervous at that time.
Yusuf succeed to reverse the situation when he played with Vietnam in the final round. He almost failed in the first round, but in the second round he could reverse the situation and steal a lot of point. Besides, the rival felt tired so it became a big chance for Yusuf.
“My coach records all of the matches of countries which joined the competition and showed me the weakness from each participant. Therefore, while I was playing with Vietnam, I could observe my rival’s movements and I knew exactly when I should attack and when I should keep quiet” he said.
This competition is very important for him.
“I always thought about my countries during the match” he said.
The competition was held in Indonesia, so it made him become more spintful to be the winner. He only focused on the competition and wanted Indonesia to be the winner. He wanted to sing Indonesia Raya song in front of people coming from many countries when he could win, and it happened. He was the winner and stood proudly in the middle stage with a gold medal.
“I moved and felt that I wanted to cry. Proudly seen by many people from around the world, I stood and sang Indonesia Raya song. It was the most memorable moment in my life and I hoped that I could feel another big moment in future” he said.
It was not easy for Yusuf to get gold medal. He always tried hard and practiced for that competition. He often failed, but he wanted to get up and try again.
“To be the winner, you have to practice, try hard and never give up. That is the success key for you. If you fail, you have to stand up and try again. Therefore, if someday you become the winner, you will feel a moment that can satisfy your failure in the past” he suggested.
He hopes that there will be many young people that can make proud for Indonesia.
‘’Fighting!!!” he said as we end this interview.
Saras Restuningtyas
