Indonesian sport climber Desak Made Rita Kusuma Dewi secured a gold medal in the women’s speed climbing event at the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, clocking a winning time of 6.062 seconds. The victory included a new Asian record and continued her run of international success following her gold medal performance at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou.
A Narrow Victory in Nagoya
Desak’s path to the podium in Nagoya was defined by a margin of just 0.002 seconds. She finished the final with a time of 6.062 seconds, narrowly edging out Chinese competitor Deng Lijuan, who recorded 6.064 seconds. This performance at the Portmesse Nagoya Exhibition Hall on September 30, 2026, established a new Asian Games and Asian continental record for the discipline.
Desak Started Climbing in Elementary School
Born on January 24, 2001, in Bali, Desak was introduced to climbing when she was in the second grade of elementary school. Her interest began while accompanying her aunt, who was also a climber, to the Singaraja City Park. She attended SMK Negeri 3 Singaraja, where she studied computer engineering and networking. Her transition from a local enthusiast to an international competitor was driven by a consistent focus on improving her climbing speed.
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International Track Record
The gold medal in Japan adds to a career marked by consistency at the highest levels of speed climbing. Desak previously won the women’s speed gold at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, where she defeated Deng Lijuan with a time of 6.364 seconds, a victory that helped qualify her for the 2024 Paris Olympics. She also secured the world title at the 2023 IFSC Climbing World Championships held in Bern, Switzerland.
Context of the Indonesian Climbing Team
While Desak’s performance secured gold, the broader Indonesian climbing contingent faced mixed results at the Nagoya Games. Indonesia’s lead climbing representatives—Alma Airiella Tsany, Sukma Lintang Cahyani, Raviandi Ramadhan, and Putra Tri Ramadani—did not reach the podium in their respective finals on October 3, 2026. The men’s lead final saw Putra Tri Ramadani finish fifth with 32 points, while Raviandi Ramadhan placed eighth.
In response to the results in the lead discipline, the Indonesian Sport Climbing Federation (FPTI) announced plans to send athletes to Japan for intensive training camps. FPTI chairperson Yenny Wahid stated that the federation intends to use Japan’s diverse lead climbing facilities and training culture to improve future performance, with programs expected to last between one and two months.
Asian Games 2026 Participation
Desak’s gold medal was one of four claimed by the Indonesian contingent in Nagoya, alongside victories in weightlifting by Rahmat Erwin Abdullah and archery by Nurisa Dian Ashrifah. The final events of the 2026 Asian Games concluded with remaining competitions, including equestrian jumping in Tokyo, following the closing of the climbing schedule.
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