Athlete Veddriq Leonardo’s remarkable achievement has brought immense pride to Southeast Asia, winning another gold medal in climbing sport and marking Indonesia’s first gold at the 2024 Olympics.

Veddriq Leonardo made history by winning Indonesia’s first gold medal in Speed Climbing at the 2024 Olympics. He was the sole Indonesian athlete to advance to the semi-finals after three teammates were eliminated in the preliminary round. In the final, he completed the 15-meter climb in 4.75 seconds, just 0.02 seconds ahead of Wu Peng from China. This victory made the 27-year-old Indonesian the first male athlete from Indonesia to win a gold medal at the 2024 Olympics.

Veddriq Leonardo of Indonesia won the gold medal in men’s Speed climbing with a time of 4.75 seconds. (Source: CGTN Sports Scene)

The climbing sport includes three main contents: Lead climbing, Speed climbing, and Bouldering. This relatively new addition to the Olympics gained international recognition after the International Sport Climbing Competition 1988, held next to a lodge in Snowbird, Utah, on a 33-meter-high outdoor wall. This paved the way for the IFSC World Cup series, and the format first appeared at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Indoor climbing gym with modern equipment. (Source: Cresent Wall)

In Vietnam, the domestic climbing community is on the rise, with increasing investment and the gradual appearance of professional indoor climbing gyms in more central city areas. This growth promises an exciting and challenging future for climbing, providing an ideal place to relax and create connections.

Climbing community in Vietnam (Source: Push Climbing)

A few words about the prizes for the winning athletes: Southeast Asian sports delegations have paid very “huge” rewards to the athletes who won gold medals at the 2024 Olympics. According to the Indonesian Ministry of Sports and Youth regulations, the athletes won the Olympic gold medal will receive 6 billion rupiah (about 9.5 billion VND) per person. After winning 2 Olympic gold medals, athlete Carlos Yulo of the Philippines received 20 million pesos (8.7 billion VND) from the Philippine Sports Commission and 6 million pesos (2.6 billion VND) from the Philippine Government. At the Tokyo Olympics, Wongpattanakit – a Thai boxer- was awarded 21.8 million baht (15.5 billion VND) for bringing home Thailand’s only women’s taekwondo gold medal.

This is a powerful source of inspiration for athletes across all nations, particularly in Southeast Asia. Bringing sports glory to each country is vital and instilling a deep patriotism. By promoting the spirit of sports and nurturing a passion for physical activity, we can effectively cultivate a strong sense of national pride and unity.

The Olympic medals for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)

Source: Summary