Rio Olympic Gold Medallist Tontowi Ahmad hung up his racquet last week aged 32. Paired with Liliyana Natsir they were among the best Mixed doubles pairs badminton has ever seen.
Born in Banyumas, Central Java, Tontowi Ahmad picked up the racquet first when he was 8, his father being an avid badminton enthusiast.
Fondly known as Owi, he made his debut in the senior international circuit in the 2006 with Yulianti. Until 2008 he even competed in the men’s doubles category, and then shifted his focus completely on mixed doubles.
Also Read: Flashback: When Tai Tzu Ying won her third All England Championship Title
He partnered various players like Richi Puspita Dili, to work up ways higher into the draws. It was in 2010 that he started playing with another fabulous doubles player that Indonesia has produced, Liliyana Natsir. She was experienced, exceptionally athletic, lightning fast with impeccable anticipation and interception at the net. These skills of Liliyana and the strong attacking skills of Tontowi Ahmad nurtured with good understanding amongst them and made them a formidable pair.
In 2011 the pair broke into the top ten of the world rankings. They maintained their rankings in the top 5 since 2012 consistently with few instances of dropping below to top 10. They reached the top of the table in May 2018.
On 17 August 2016, when Indonesia was celebrating their Independence day, Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir had Indonesia’s flag fly high with their National anthem playing, by winning the country’s first Olympic gold medal in the mixed doubles category. The formidable pair beat Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying of Malaysia, 21-14, 21-12 in a 45 minute encounter. In the semi finals they fought their way out against former Olympic champions and first seeds Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei of China 21–16, 21-15.
The pair called as Owi-Butet by the Indonesian fans, have won two world championship titles, in 2013 at Guangzhou and, in 2017 at Glasgow where they were stretched to the full length in a spectacular three setter against the first seed Chen Qing Chen And Zheng Siwei , winning it 15–21, 21–16, 21–15.
Other highlights of his career include a hat trick at the prestigious All England Open winning the title in a row in 2012, 2013, 2014 and a hat trick at The Indian Open in 2011, 2012, 2013.
After Liliyana Natsir’s retirement in January 2019, Tontowi struggled to thrive in the circuit. He made it to the quarterfinals of the All England and Indonesia Open 2019, partnering with Winny Oktavina Kandow and in 2020 with Apriyani Rahayu, making into the second round of the Indonesia Masters 2020.
Described as a humble, hardworking athlete by coaches and a mentor figure by junior players, Tontowi Ahmad’s journey in the sport is inspirational to badminton fans all over the world and to the aspiring players of Indonesia.
Also Read: Badminton: PPBA resumes training, ask players from Maharashtra to stay back
He announced his retirement on his social media page on Instagram,
“This is the time to say goodbye to something I’m devoted to for over half my age that has made my life more colourful, sometimes in bad and good times, but I’m proud of what I have achieved. I indeed hope to quit at the top of the podium but this is life, we cannot get everything that we want, let alone in this situation. But whatever happens, I’m very grateful to have been in this position.”
He extended his gratitude to all parties who had supported him during his badminton career. “This is the time for me to continue my life, achieve success in other fields”
Happy Retirement, Tontowi Ahmad!
