Indonesia’s Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu celebrated, hugged, smiled, laughed and laid on the court’s ground as it dawned on them that they won Olympic Gold at the women’s badminton doubles match. They played and won against China’s Jia Yifan and Chen Qingchen with a score of 2-0, who are ranked in the badminton world’s top 10. It was definitely a match of wills, and they made the shocking win. The Chinese pair ended up taking Olympic Silver.
This becomes Indonesia’s 8th Gold Medal in Olympic history, and Polii and Rahayu have also become the first unseeded women’s double’s team to win Olympic Gold in women’s badminton doubles history. So how did it all unfold:
- The Indonesian team took an early lead over the Chinese team, winning the first game with 21-19.
- In the second game the Indonesian pair improved their stats, winning Gold with the second game score of 21-15.
- Polii’s racket broke towards the end of game 2, but Rahayu held the line and Polii got back in time to finish the game and win.
Badminton is Indonesia’s national sport, so the win by Polii and Rahayu will definitely encourage this even more. They will also go home as national heroes.
Congratulations!
Header image via Twitter