The team's manager, Laras Fitriana Novianty Sumarna, stated that the Indonesian Taekwondo National Training Centering (Pelatnas) Team, comprising two coaches and six athletes, participated in the tournament.
"This is done as a try out in the run up to the SEA Games Cambodia and to gather points for the Paris Olympics," she told ANTARA through an instant message on Tuesday.
Around 1,500 athletes from 29 countries participated in the G2 level international open tournament. The championship featured the cadet, junior, and senior categories.
The gold medal was bagged by Ni Kadek Heni Prikasih, who competed in the women's U-46 kilogram class.
During the final match, she defeated Israeli athlete, with a final score of 2-0. The final match was intense and aggressive, with numerous variations of kicks delivered to the body and head of the opponent.
From the three match rounds, Prikasih won the first and the second round, clocking scores 13:9 and 11:6 respectively. With two wins, she managed to bag the gold medal.
Other Indonesian athletes who also competed in Bulgaria include Megawati Tamesti (U 53kg), Silvana Lamanda (U 63kg), Thoriq Muhammad (U 63kg), and Osando Naufal (U 80kg).
According to Indonesian taekwondo coach Kim Seung-ill, the athletes had performed freely, and the quality of their performance had improved.
"For young taekwondoin, this is a valuable experience to measure the quality of their techniques, physical condition, and mental preparation," he said, as quoted from the Central KONI website, Tuesday.
Chairperson of the Central Indonesia National Sports Committee (KONI) Marciano Norman lauded Prikasih's achievement.
"By working even harder, I believe there will be another achievement in addition to motivating other Indonesian athletes to clock an achievement," he remarked.
Chairperson of the Indonesian Taekwondo Executive Board (PBTI) H.M Thamrin Marzuki also applauded and welcomed Prikasih's success.
"The result in Bulgaria serves as a motivation to achieve the best result in the SEA Games Cambodia," he remarked.
Speaking in connection with the tryout result in Bulgaria, Head of Achievement Guidance (Binpres) in PBTI Fahmy Fachrezzy expects that the tournament in which the national team participated can be an important learning experience.
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Translator: Arindra Meodia, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Sri Haryati
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