Indonesia’s Archery Gold Opens Path Toward Olympic Compound Competition

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Nurisa Dian Ashrifah’s gold medal in the women’s compound event at the 2026 Asian Games has given Indonesia’s archery federation an important boost as the compound division prepares to become part of the upcoming Olympic program.

The achievement marked Indonesia’s highest-ever Asian Games result in archery and provided an important milestone for the development of the sport as Indonesian archers seek to compete at the world’s highest level.

Deputy Chairman II for Development and Achievement at the Indonesian Archery Association (Perpani) Abdul Razak said the achievement was particularly significant because the compound division will be contested at the upcoming Olympics.

"That means a great deal to the federation, because the compound division will be contested at the upcoming Olympics," Abdul Razak said in Nagoya, Japan, on Thursday, October 1, as quoted by Antara.

The gold medal was also beyond the association’s initial target. Indonesia had originally targeted two bronze medals in this sport, because the team’s preparations were considered not fully optimal.

"That was indeed beyond the target. When the Minister of Youth and Sports, through the NOC, asked us for a medal target, we only aimed for two bronze medals. We had never been set a medal target before, let alone for gold," he said.

According to him, Nurisa Dian Ashrifah, popularly known as Hani, was one of Indonesia’s main prospects after winning gold at the 2025 SEA Games. Her performance remained strong enough for the federation to continue projecting her as a medal contender.

However, he said Indonesia’s preparations this year had not been fully optimal. The national training program was still using a decentralized system and athlete call-ups, meaning the team’s composition was not yet fully ideal. Opportunities for competition trials were also limited.

"Our national training camp has been somewhat disjointed this year. We are still dealing with a decentralized setup and repeated call-ups, so the team's preparation hasn't been optimal. We also haven't had many opportunities for competitive outings, aside from the one in Singapore," he emphasized.

Despite the limitations, the federation had identified Hani as a potential medal contributor from the beginning. The road to the gold medal included strong competition, particularly from India.

"The toughest challenge is against India. Once we get past India, we will be confident enough to aim for the gold medal," he conluded, adding that the achievement demonstrated that Indonesian archers could compete at a high level despite preparations that were not fully ideal. ***