VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - The Indonesian badminton team is targeting to clinch three gold medals at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

"We have a target of (bagging) three gold; that is our hope. But I have the goal to (achieve) more than the target," head of coaching and achievement at the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI), Rionny Mainaky, said at PBSI's national training center here on Wednesday.

The three gold medals are expected to be won in the men's group, men's singles, and men's doubles competitions.

According to Mainaky, there is potential to improve the team's achievement at the 2018 Asian Games, in which Indonesia bagged two gold medals, as long as the coaches and the athletes have strong motivation.

He said that going by the China Open Super 1000 tournament, the performance of the athletes is still below expectations. Nevertheless, the positive achievement at the Hong Kong Open Super 500 tournament last week is expected to boost the spirit of the Indonesian team.

"I hope it can become a motivation for them and boost the confidence of our athletes," he added.

In preparation for the 2022 Asian Games, all athletes underwent training after returning from Hong Kong. He said that the players are ready enough to compete in Hangzhou.

The training phase did not start from the initial stage, but focused on efforts to maintain fitness and mental readiness, considering the relatively short preparation time.

In addition, he informed that the athletes who will compete at the 2022 Asian Games were selected based on two indicators — ranking and achievement.

The Asian Games, which were originally scheduled for September 2022, were postponed to 2023.

Earlier, Youth and Sports Minister Dito Ariotedjo announced that Indonesia will send 415 athletes to the games. (Antaranews)