Photo by Muchlis via Kemenpora
The Tokyo 2020 Olympics Women’s Doubles Gold Medalist, Greysia Polii has officially retired from her badminton career. She announced her retirement during a farewell ceremony called Greysia Polii: Testimonial Day at Istora Senayan Stadium on Sunday, June 12th. The ceremony took place just before the final round of the 2022 Indonesia Masters and was attended by families, fellow athletes, coaches, Badminton Indonesia Association (PBSI) chairman and staff, national celebrities, Indonesia’s Minister of Youth and Sports to Badminton Fans in Indonesia.
Greysia Polii’s Dream of Becoming an Athlete
Greysia Polii began playing badminton when she was four years old. She started playing it for fun but as time passes by, she plays to win. On her testimonial day, she said, “What started as a hobby turned into a dream. By the time I was 13, the dream became more obvious. To be a champion”. Greysia Polii then started her professional badminton career at the age of 16, when she joined the national badminton team in 2003. During her early days as an athlete, she played both mixed doubles and women’s doubles. She also changes partners in court several times. However, she eventually focused on playing in the women's doubles category.
Peaks and Valleys of Greysia Polii’s Badminton Career
It is known that Greysia Polii has a never-ending list of achievements as an athlete. She won her first gold medal during the SEA Games in 2007. She also earned many silver and bronze medals in numerous national and international championships. The peak achievement of her career was when she won the gold medal during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with her last partner, Apriyani Rahayu. Nevertheless, her career in badminton isn’t as smooth as it seems. She didn’t win any title in her own country, Indonesia until 2020 during Indonesia Master. She and Meiliana Jauhari, her partner at that time, were disqualified from the London Olympics in 2012. She almost gave up and retired earlier from badminton in 2016 due to injuries. However, support from influential people in her life made her rise to continue her dream.
The Farewell Ceremony
At the age of 34, after nearly two decades, Greysia Polii decided to retire from badminton. As a farewell, she held a Testimonial Day which was filled with various kinds of activities. The event started with a music performance and then continued with exhibition charity matches where she played her last matches with the world’s top athletes such as Hendra Setiawan, Anthony Ginting, Jonatan Christie, Wang Chi-Lin, Yuta Watanabe, Sapsiree Taerattanachai, and many more. At the end of the event, Greysia Polii expressed her gratitude to her family, friends, coaches, her last partner, Apriyani Rahayu, and to her nation, Indonesia in a heartfelt speech. Thank you and good luck for the upcoming future Greysia Polii!
References:
Greysia Polii. (2022, 12 June). Greysia Polii Testimonial Day – Live [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/Os4KvUT_4RY
Khairunisa, Anisa. (2022, 14 June). Greysia Polii Retires, Take a Peek at Her Career. Retrieved from https://www.kompasiana.com/anisakhairunisa6223/62a87c1efdcdb4369a4e99f2/greysia-polii-retires-take-a-peek-at-her-career?page=1&page_images=1
Olympic Champion Greysia Polii Retires from Badminton. (2022, 12 June). Retrieved from https://jakartaglobe.id/news/olympic-champion-greysia-polii-retires-from-badminton
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