Eko Yuli Irawan Heads to the Ninth SEA Games

The Southeast Asian multi-sport event, the SEA Games, ideally serves as a platform for young athletes to showcase their talents. However, senior athletes who feel they can still compete often wish to try their hand and frequently become the main hope for winning medals. Veteran lifter from Indonesia, Eko Yuli Irawan, is one of those senior athletes.

Among the eight male lifters competing in the national weightlifting selection for the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand on Thursday (21/8/2025), only three were born in the 1990s. Eko Yuli Irawan is the most senior lifter, born in 1989, making him 36 years old. Meanwhile, Zul Ilmi was born in 1996 and M Ripqy in 1998.

At the national selection event held at the national weightlifting training center in Mess Kwini, Jakarta, Eko competed against his junior, Leonardo Adventino, who was born in 2004. Unlike Eko, who is a senior athlete, Leonardo is a regional athlete from West Java.

The two athletes are competing to become the best lifter in the 65 kg class, a new weight category established as of June 2025. Whoever wins the duel will represent at the SEA Games in Thailand 2025, which will be held at the end of next year.

Weightlifting involves two main types of lifts: the snatch, which involves lifting a barbell from the floor to overhead in one movement. The clean and jerk, which involves lifting the barbell from the floor to the shoulders (clean) and then lifting it overhead (jerk) in two separate movements.

Leonardo actually performed convincingly. In his first attempt at the 132-kilogram snatch, the three-time gold medalist in the 65-kg class at the 2025 National Senior Weightlifting Championships last May, he successfully completed it.

Similarly, when Leonardo attempted the second lift of 135 kg and 137 kg, he ran out of time during his final attempt, rendering his lift invalid.

A lifter has one minute to complete the lift, counted from the moment they step onto the competition platform. If the lifter does not lift the barbell within that minute, the attempt is considered unsuccessful.

The failure was unfortunate, considering that a five-kilogram advantage over Eko Yuli's best lift would have been invaluable to Leonardo in the clean and jerk. Despite this, Leonardo still outperformed Eko, whose best lift was 132 kg.

When attempting the 136 kg lift, Eko actually succeeded. However, the judges deemed it invalid. His arm movement was deemed to be a press-out, meaning it wasn't fully extended. As a result, Leonardo won the snatch with a best lift of 135.

The duel then continued with the clean and jerk. However, Leonardo failed to appear on both occasions. He claimed to be suffering from cramps. The audience was surprised by his absence.

Then, on the third attempt, Leonardo appeared. Leonardo performed and didn't run out of time, but failed to lift 163 kg.

Eko Yuli, who attempted 164 kg on his first try, successfully completed it. With Leonardo's failure, Eko did not need a second or third attempt to secure his advantage.

Despite the performance anomalies of Leonardo, the battle ultimately belonged to Eko. Thus, for the ninth consecutive time since his debut in the 2007 edition in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, Eko will once again compete in the SEA Games.

In the previous eight editions, Eko has consistently won gold medals in the weight categories of 56 kg, 61 kg, and 62 kg. Only at the 2017 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games did this lifter from Lampung secure a silver medal.

There are at least 7 female athletes and 6 male athletes who will be proposed based on the selection results. The majority of them are athletes aged 25 years and under.

Eko has indeed stated multiple times that he is not "finished." If he still has the opportunity to compete on the international stage, this seven-time gold medalist at the SEA Games admits he will take advantage of it. Moreover, there are still no juniors capable of defeating Eko, as evidenced in the national selection.

In fact, the question regarding the search for Eko Yuli's successor has been raised for a long time. The athlete closest in generation to Eko is actually Ricko Saputra, who is 25 years old. The two athletes even competed in the 61 kg class during the Paris 2024 Olympic qualification.

Eko and Ricko both competed in the 61 kg class and met the other requirements to qualify for Paris. The total lifts of Eko and Ricko were only two kilograms apart. Eko achieved a total lift of 300 kg, while Ricko lifted 298 kg.

However, in his final chance to overtake his senior at the World Weightlifting Championships in Phuket, Thailand, Ricko failed three snatches, failing to record a total lift. Thus, Eko's ticket to Paris remained in his grasp.

Not long after that competition, Ricko was also demoted from the pelantas due to being deemed not to show performance improvement. Ricko participated in the national selection but competed in the 60 kg class.

Another hope emerged from the younger lifters, Satrio Adi Nugroho (23) and Muhammad Ibnul Rizqih (19). Adi managed to secure three silver medals at the IWF Grand Prix II 2023 in Doha, Qatar, and won gold while breaking a record at the 2022 Youth World Championship in Jeddah. Meanwhile, Ibnul earned a bronze medal at the IWF Grand Prix II 2023.

However, they were no longer part of the national training camp at the end of 2024. Ibnul was even banned from participating in sports for four years after being found to have used the drug furosemide, according to an examination by the Bangkok Anti-Doping Laboratory.

Nevertheless, the Head of the Achievement Development Division of the Indonesian Weightlifting Association (PB PABSI), Hadi Wihardja, stated that regeneration is indeed ongoing. Leonardo, for instance, despite losing the duel with Eko, is a potential athlete who will continue the legacy of the Olympian.

The "stock" of successors for Eko or lifters in other categories, said Hadi, is abundant. This is evident from various events within the country, including the National Championship. Therefore, there is no need for concern about losing successors.

The national selection was attended by a total of eight male lifters and 14 female lifters. These lifters are not only athletes currently residing in the national training center but also regional athletes from Aceh, Jambi, DKI Jakarta, East Java, and Central Papua.

Hadi stated that the national selection is open, with PB PABSI sending invitations to all Provincial Boards of PABSI. However, athletes participating in the selection must meet the Minimum Total Lift (MATP), which is the total weight successfully lifted in the first attempt in weightlifting.

In the women's category, there are seven classes contested. Meanwhile, in the men's category, there are six classes. In each class, there are specific MATPs that must be met by each athlete. These MATPs must also be achieved when the selection for a particular class is only participated in by one athlete, such as the 60 kg class, which was only entered by Ricko Saputra.

The MATP for the 60 kg class is 275 kg. Ricko surpassed it by lifting a total of 280 kg (128 kg snatch, 152 kg clean and jerk).

The Chairman of the Research, Development, and Data Division of PB PABSI, Dikdik Zafar Sidik, stated that the MATP also serves as a reference for whether athletes can win medals in the future. This calculation is based on various elements, including results from previous SEA Games, even if in different categories.

After the national selection, the PB PABSI immediately held a meeting with the Ministry of Youth and Sports to submit recommendations for athletes who will be taken to the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand. There are at least 7 female athletes and 6 male athletes who will be proposed based on the selection results. The majority of them are athletes aged 25 and under.