Three MMA Athletes From Indonesia Appear At The 2022 Asian-Pacific Championship Championships

Three MMA athletes who will fight in the 2022 Asia-Pacific MMA Championship with the Chairman of NOC Indonesia, Raja Sapta Oktohari (white shirt). (Photo; Doc. KOI)

JAKARTA - Three mixed martial arts athletes from Indonesia will take part in the 2022 Asia-Pacific MMA Championship in Pattaya, Thailand, from November 9 to 13.

The three athletes were Desi Rahayu who fell in the class -72 kg of MMA striking women, Lorensius Andi in the 56 kg class of men's striking MMA and Aprilia Eka Putri Lumbantungkup who appeared in the 56 kg women's class at MMA striking. The third is the Indonesian amateur Sports Association (PB POAI) athlete.

"I congratulate you and wish you success, good luck everyone. Take care of your health, don't forget that COVID-19 is still there," said Chairman of the Indonesian Olympic Committee Raja Sapta Oktohar at the NOC Indonesia office, Friday, November 4.

The three athletes are scheduled to depart on Tuesday, November 8. They will fly to Thailand accompanied by coach Andrieyani Manday and team manager Peter Taslim.

Okto advised the three athletes to be serious and fight optimally to bring home the gold medal to Indonesia. The reason is, they carry the name of the nation.

"We, Indonesia are not just a country. We are a big country that must be respected. This is a good opportunity to be able to go home with proud achievements," said Okto.

The three athletes themselves are very optimistic about their preparation. They said that this would be the first time Indonesia has sent MMA athletes to the Asian-Pacific MMA Championships.

MMA Indonesia Team Manager Peter Salim said the Asian-Pacific MMA Championships will use amateur regulations. This guarantees security and does not harm athletes because they compete with safety protection.

"When the athletes did not have resistance for three seconds, the match was immediately stopped. If someone falls, they should not be beaten again," said Peter.

"There are two categories, striking and MMA. If striking is dominant, fighting for standing. Grabbing stops, the landslide gets points. If MMA uses lockdowns. Everyone has continued to practice at the club, if asked about opportunities, we are quite likely," he added.