Indonesian para-badminton standout Hary Susanto carved a path across international competition, collecting titles across the ASEAN Para Games, Asian Para Games, and the World Championships before capturing gold at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
Early Breakthroughs and Continental Dominance
Susanto first emerged on the international stage during the mid-2000s. Records from his career show a strong multi-medal haul at the 2006 FESPIC Games, where he claimed one gold and one silver medal. He followed that performance by sweeping three gold medals at both the 2007 and 2009 editions of the ASEAN Para Games.
Building on that momentum, Susanto traveled to Guangzhou for the first edition of the Asian Para Games in 2010. There, he partnered with Trihono to capture the men’s doubles gold medal while adding a silver medal in the individual tournament.
His continental success expanded at the 2014 Asian Para Games in Incheon. Susanto teamed up with Ukun Rukaendi to win the men’s doubles SL3-SL4 title. The pair’s performance fueled a showing for the Indonesian delegation, which finished the badminton tournament with 13 medals across standing categories.
World Championships and Multi-Gold Success
The year 2017 proved to be one of the most decorated stretches of Susanto’s athletic career. At the World Championships in Ulsan, South Korea, he secured two world titles. He and Rukaendi defeated China’s Chen Xiaoyu and Yang Jianyuan 21-10, 21-12 in the men’s doubles SL3-SL4 final. Shortly after, Susanto partnered with Leani Ratri Oktila in the mixed doubles SL3-SU5, beating Yang Jianyuan and Yang Qiuxia 21-14, 21-14 for his second gold of the event.
Later that season at the Kuala Lumpur ASEAN Para Games, Susanto completed a three-gold sweep, winning the SL4 singles, the men’s doubles with Rukaendi, and the mixed doubles alongside Oktila.
He continued his winning ways at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta. Susanto helped the Indonesian national team secure the men’s team competition title and teamed up with Oktila once more to win the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 final, defeating Thailand’s Siripong Teamarrom and Nipada Saensupa 21-7, 21-10.
At the 2019 World Championships in Basel, Switzerland, Susanto and Oktila successfully defended their mixed doubles SL3-SU5 crown by defeating Germany’s Jan-Niklas Pott and Katrin Seibert 21-4, 21-11. In the men’s doubles SL3-SL4, Susanto and Rukaendi earned the bronze medal.
Gold at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics
When para-badminton made its official debut on the Paralympic program at the Tokyo 2020 Games—held in 2021—Susanto competed in both the men’s singles SL4 and the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 with Oktila.
While he exited the singles tournament during the group stage, his mixed doubles campaign with Oktila reached the final. The Indonesian duo moved through the group stage, advanced to the gold-medal match, and defeated France's Lucas Mazur and Faustine Noël 23-21, 21-17 to claim the Paralympic gold medal.
Later Career and Recent International Bouts
Susanto maintained an international schedule following his success in Tokyo. At the 2022 ASEAN Para Games, he contributed to Indonesia’s victory in the men’s team competition while securing a silver medal in men’s doubles.
He returned to the top of the podium at the 2023 ASEAN Para Games in Phnom Penh, capturing gold in both the SL3-SL4 doubles alongside Rukaendi and the men’s team event. Later that year, at the Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, Susanto and Rukaendi reached the quarterfinals of the men’s doubles SL3-SL4 before bowing out in a three-set match against India’s Nitesh Kumar and Tarun Dhillon.
