Speaking at the 16th National Conference of the Indonesian Pencak Silat Association (PB IPSI) here on Saturday, Prabowo said he will continue to support IPSI and the sport of pencak silat even after he no longer serves as its chairman.
“There are many tasks ahead for PB IPSI. I apologize that I have not yet succeeded in bringing pencak silat to the Olympics. We will keep trying. I believe my successor will succeed in bringing it to the Olympics,” Prabowo said.
During his tenure with PB IPSI, Prabowo noted that Indonesian pencak silat athletes have achieved many accomplishments and brought honor to the nation in various international arenas by winning bronze, silver, and gold medals.
He expressed confidence that pencak silat will eventually become one of the sports contested at the Olympic level.
“The journey is still long. We hope pencak silat will enter the Olympics, and we believe it will. But we should not be overly obsessed; our focus must be on maintaining the quality and purity of pencak silat itself,” he said.
He added that if pencak silat remains pure and strong, many people from around the world will come to Indonesia to learn it, as has already been proven with athletes from various countries coming to study the martial art.
The 16th PB IPSI National Conference was held on April 10-11, with the main agenda being the election of the PB IPSI chairman for the 2026-2030 period.
The conference also sought to promote pencak silat as a sport to be included in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, United States.
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Translator: Prisca, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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