Aprizal's Eight-Year Oasis, Gymnastics Team Consolation Medal at the SEA Games

BANGKOK, KOMPAS — After eight years of waiting, Indonesian male gymnast Muhammad Aprizal has finally won his first medal at the SEA Games. The 30-year-old athlete has also put an end to the sorrow of the Indonesian gymnastics team, which had previously lost consecutive medals in the last two final events.

Aprizal won a silver medal after performing so maturely in the final of the apparatus event at the Gymnasium 4 Stadium of Thammasat University Rangsit, Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday (11/12/2025). He finished in second place out of five finalists with a score of 12.900, only behind the representative from Vietnam, Nguyen Van Kanh (13.767).

The gymnast from Riau was unable to contain her sadness after the competition concluded. She cried in the embrace of her coach, Ferrous One Willyodac. "This is my first medal after my third SEA Games. That's why it's a bit emotional. I was thinking earlier that if I didn't get it, then that's it, but it turns out this is my fortune," she stated.

Aprizal has participated in two previous editions of the SEA Games, in Kuala Lumpur 2017 and Manila 2019, but he was never fortunate. After that, he took a break from representing the national team due to age and performance factors. Eventually, he was called back to the national training camp this year.

Many of his colleagues in the national training center have already retired. Agus Prayoko, for instance. Nevertheless, Aprizal is reluctant to give up on gymnastics, a sport he has pursued thanks to his uncle's encouragement when he was a child. He demonstrated his resurgence at the Aceh Medan PON 2024 by winning two silver medals.

When asked for whom the medal was dedicated, he replied, first and foremost, to himself. "Because this is an extraordinary struggle. Finally, I have the opportunity again. Thank you to the PB (Indonesian Gymnastics Federation). Also to the coaches for all the drama I went through during training. Because of age as well," he said, visibly teary-eyed.

Aprizal's talent has been evident for a long time, particularly in the use of wrist instruments. However, that talent has not been maximized effectively until the past year. In this national training camp, he has undergone many beneficial programs, ranging from training sessions in Russia and Japan to trials in Hungary.

Two weeks before the SEA Games, the men's team is still undergoing a training camp in Japan. The gymnasts are gaining a wealth of knowledge as they are directly assisted by international judges for movement assessments during the camp. "This child is talented, but that's how it is. He only won a medal at the age of 30 because he was utilized correctly," said Ferrous.

Aprizal was actually on the list to compete in the Artistic Gymnastics World Championship in Jakarta 2025, last October. However, he developed a fever just before the competition. As a result, the gymnast was forced to withdraw from the event. For him, that bitter moment became motivation to perform with greater determination in Thailand.

After winning his first medal at the biennial event, Aprizal is still uncertain about the future of his career. He has not considered retirement even though he has entered his thirties. "Honestly, I still don't know. I will just go with the flow since I am already of senior age. So, I will just go with the flow," he concluded.

Aprizal also alleviated the disappointment of the gymnastics team in the previous two events. In the men's floor exercise final, Abiyu Rafi (12.267) only managed to secure fourth place out of six participants. Female gymnast Salsabilla Hadi (12.533) also finished outside the top three in the vault final.

The level of difficulty in the movements and execution of Salsabilla is still below that of her competitors, Aleah Finnegan (Philippines) and Nguyen Thi Quynh Nhu (Vietnam). The coach of the women's team, Eva Novalina Butar Butar, stated that there needs to be a significant error from the opponents in order to reach the podium. "We are indeed still behind. The movements need to be improved," said Eva.

Meanwhile, Abiyu has still not been able to showcase his best abilities. The execution of his movements was very "messy," with many additional movements upon landing. He even slipped and nearly fell. Abiyu did not comment much after the competition. "I can, I can (recover)," he said regarding the singles final on Friday.