Greysia/Nitya’s achievement was special, as it broke the 36 years’ barrenness, wherein our Women’s Doubles failed to get any title in this biggest Asian multi-event competition, let alone a gold. Our last title before that was Verawaty Fajrin/Imelda Wiguna’s gold in the 1978 Asian Games. “It took a long, complicated process for the Indonesian Women’s Doubles to achieve a breakthrough and win another title at the international level. That was truly my first memorable moment, one I will never forget all my life!”
Unfortunately, Nithya’s later injuries down the road forced her to retire. Greysia found herself with a new partner – Apriyani Rahayu. “As Apriyani is much younger than me, I need to spend more time and effort to emotionally support her and motivate her.”
Greysia went on to thank all of her competitors through the years: “In my early years, China dominated the Women’s Doubles – then Japan, then Korea. This spurs me to work hard and catch up to them, even surpass them,” she said. “I managed to keep my edge up by recalling that my opponents abroad are not just my fellow Indonesians, but also Chinese, Japanese, and Korean players. This is my whip.”
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True, Greysia is retiring as a professional badminton athlete, but she is definitely not quitting the sport itself. “One thing for sure – I love this sport very much, especially the Women’s Doubles. However, we need to talk about this at a later date. There’s so much to discuss with so many people, especially with my husband.”
An amazing ending to an amazing career. Greysia, thank you for all of your dedication and achievements for Indonesia! Good luck with your new life. (rp)