JABAR EKSPRES – Indonesian female gymnast Rifda Irfanaluthfi has qualified for the 2023 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships scheduled to roll out in Antwerp, Belgium on September 30-October 8.
The 23-year-old athlete made sure to advance to the event which became a qualification for the XXXIII/2024 Olympics in Paris, France after performing well at the 2023 Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships at OCBC Arena, Kallang, Singapore, June 10-18.
Rifda managed to rank sixth for all-around by collecting 51,298 points. The result was enough to qualify her for the 2023 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Belgium.
Rifda gave her best performance with a total score of 51.298 and she was ranked sixth in the all-around.
Ita revealed that Rifda’s mission at the 2023 Asian Championships was not to win a medal, but to secure a ticket to the 2023 World Championships in Belgium, which is a qualifying event for the 2024 Olympics.
Rifda ranked sixth behind Qiyuan Qiu (China/54,932 points), Qingying Zhang (China/53,965 points), Solyi Shin (South Korea/53,499 points, Xinyi Zhang (China/52,664 points), and Yunseo Lee (South Korea/52,056 points).
While those who qualify for the 2023 World Championships as a result of the Asian Championships in Singapore as a whole there are eight athletes.
Besides Rifda, there are Aleah Finnegan (Philippines), Milka Gehani Elpitiya Badalge Dona (Sri Lanka), Dildora Aripova (Uzbekistan), Aida Bauyrzhanova (Kazakhstan), Nadine Joy Nathan (Singapore), Kylee Ann Kvamme (Philippines), and Emma Yap (Singapore).
“So Rifda ranked sixth in the overall results at the Asian Championships. China and South Korea as a team have entered (World Championship qualification), so Rifda went up and the other gymnasts did too. They qualify,” Ita added.
Ita appreciated Rifda’s performance in Singapore. Rifda successfully passed the all-round qualification followed by qualifying for the final on uneven bars and vault.
The silver medalist of the XVIII/2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games in floor gymnastics ranked fifth in the final of the uneven bars number with a score of 12,633 points and a jumping horse with 12,967 points.
