‘Rio failure would be disastrous for Indonesia’

BIRMINGHAM: Badminton great Rexy Mainaky, who won doubles gold at the 1996 Olympics, says it would be a huge setback if Indonesia failed to win another medal at the Rio Games.

Indonesia have won at least one gold since badminton was first included on to the Olympic programme in 1992, but the nation's shuttlers couldn't replicate the success at London 2012.

One doubles pair, Praveen Jordan and Debby Susanto, reached the All-England finals on Sunday and Mainaky admitted that performances had been "unexpected".

"The All- England is something special for everyone in Indonesia and anyone who picks up a racket, but I can see the pressure," Mainaky told Reuters.

"This is the good thing though, to learn a lot from a big tournament like this and prepare for the Olympics."

Asked whether another Olympics without a medal would constitute a disaster, Mainaky said: "Yes, of course it would." The two-time world champion also referenced Indonesia's part in the "match- fixing" scandal which enveloped the London Olympics when four pairs were expelled from the Games.

"In 2012 our top pair did something silly and they got dropped from the Olympic village," he said. "The All-England has been a good simulation for our top players to win a medal in Rio."

Mainaky is currently head of development at the Indonesian Badminton Association, but his links with a charity associated with the sport has recently given him the chance to step away from elite performance.

As ambassador for badminton charity Solibad, Mainaky last month took 30 rackets and shoes to a village built around a rubbish dump on the outskirts of Jakarta.

Mainaky, who also hails from a poor background, used to travel three hours every day as a child for five years in order to train in Jakarta.

"My dream for a long time was to give my talents back," said Mainaky. "I feel lucky that I went to school and took a racket to training. When I was little I was not far from their feelings."