The audience on the TV screen held their breath when the shuttlecock hit by Jia Yifan and Chen Qingchen fly across to the right side of the field. Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu immediately jumped and expressed joy; they scream. Victory!

The Chinese double pair declared a challenge to the judges to see where the shuttlecock fell, but the results are already clear. The shuttle dropped on the outside of the line. Finally, the Indonesian women's badminton double pair won their first gold medal at the  Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Polii and Rahayu's struggle is not easy. Yifan and Qingchen managed to play a long game to score points, although later, the Indonesian pair managed to score for some of their mistakes. The success of this gold medal is also the first for the Indonesian contingent for the women's doubles clash.

 

 

 

 

 

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All events in the badminton final were the culmination of the journey of the two proud athletes of Indonesia. Polii (33), the oldest athlete to win gold in women's doubles badminton, paid for her failure at the 2012 London Olympics. At that time, Polii and her partner, Meiliana Jauhari, were disqualified for violating ethics.

The failure became a valuable lesson for Polii. She continued to dream of getting a gold medal in the biggest sporting event until it came true today.

"The London Olympics taught me to never give up on your dreams. I know I didn't just say it, I meant it. Praise God, it feels amazing. This is my third Olympics, and I'm not young anymore. In the previous two editions I failed to get a medal but today I and Apri finally made it to the final. Contributing medals for Indonesia," said Polii after the match.

Polli was born in Jakarta on August 11, 1987. At the age of two, her father died and forced Polii, her mother, and four siblings to move to Manado. Her interest in the world of badminton was seen since childhood due to her sister. Polii then returned to Jakarta to join the Jaya Raya Jakarta club and play in the doubles class.

 

 

 

 

 

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After changing with various partners on the field, Polii met Apriyani Rahayu in 2017. This meeting was a turning point in Polii's career until finally getting a gold medal in Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Rahayu or commonly called Apri, is a lot younger than Polii. Even though they are far apart in age, the two complement each other's weaknesses in the field in terms of playing. Apri is famous for her hitting power and also her quick reaction to hold the shuttle really.

Rahayu was born on April 29, 1998, in Konawe, an area in Southeast Sulawesi. Her introduction to badminton occurred when she was five years old by playing in her hometown in Lawulo Village. This talent was taken seriously by joining the Bakrie Pelita Club in 2011 and moving to Jaya Raya Jakarta in 2015.

Before joining Polii, Rahayu has competed in various national and international championships and several pairs of athletes playing in mixed doubles and women's doubles. Her meeting with Polli occurred in 2017 when they were together practising at the Cipayung National Training. Since then, their achievements have been unstoppable, and they have won several world tournaments.

 

 

 

 

 

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"I can't believe that this is what I got. I really didn't expect it to go this far. I'm just thinking of moving on and on. I forced myself to do my best," said Rahayu after the match.

"I want to thank God and my partner (Polii). I told her I wasn't getting any younger, so I asked Polii to keep running with me. We have to go through the challenges in all the rounds we have and defend for this gold medal. This is what we want. Thank you, Polii," said Rahayu.

Congratulation, Polii and Rahayu!