The Most Famous

ATHLETES from Indonesia

This page contains a list of the greatest Indonesian Athletes. The pantheon dataset contains 6,025 Athletes, 6 of which were born in Indonesia. This makes Indonesia the birth place of the 69th most number of Athletes behind Azerbaijan, and Moldova.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Indonesian Athletes of all time. This list of famous Indonesian Athletes is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Indonesian Athletes.

1. Xenia Stad-de Jong (1922 - 2012)

With an HPI of 50.34, Xenia Stad-de Jong is the most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 20 different languages on wikipedia.

Xenia Stad-de Jong (4 March 1922 – 3 April 2012) was a Dutch track and field athlete who competed in sprinting events. Born in Semarang in the former Dutch East Indies (Indonesia), her greatest success was winning the gold medal as the first runner in the 4 x 100 metres relay at the 1948 Summer Olympics, together with Netty Witziers-Timmer, Gerda van der Kade-Koudijs and Fanny Blankers-Koen. She took part in the individual 100 metres event, where she was eliminated in the semi-finals. In 1950, she won another medal with the Dutch relay team when they finished second at the 1950 European Championships. She ran in the individual 100 m at the championships as well. Stad-de Jong died in the Dutch city of Zoetermeer in 2012, aged 90.

2. Kusuma Wardhani (1964 - 2023)

With an HPI of 46.92, Kusuma Wardhani is the 2nd most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Kusuma Wardhani (20 February 1964 – 12 November 2023) was an Indonesian archer and an Olympic silver medallist. Together with Nurfitriyana Saiman and Lilies Handayani she won the women's team silver medal at the 1988 Olympics, bringing the first ever Olympic medal to Indonesia. In the 1980s, Wardhani won multiple medals in individual recurve events at the SEA Games. After retiring from competitions she headed the Education, Youth and Sports Office of Bali. Wardhani died on 12 November 2023, at the age of 59.

3. Lien Gisolf (1910 - 1993)

With an HPI of 46.44, Lien Gisolf is the 3rd most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Carolina Anna "Lien" Gisolf (13 July 1910 – 30 May 1993) was a Dutch high jumper. She won a silver medal at the 1928 Summer Olympics and finished fourth in 1932. Her talent was discovered during school competition in 1926, when it turned out that she jumped 30 centimetres higher than her classmates. On 3 July 1928 she set an unofficial Dutch record by jumping 1.465 metres, which was followed by a new world record of 1.582 metres. The same year she became the first Dutch female athlete to win an Olympic medal. She improved her world record twice: to 1.608 metres in 1929 and 1.623 metres in 1932. During the 1930 Women's World Games Gisolf became second. When she had to jump a barrage with her only opponent left, German Inge Braumüller, she tore a muscle, ruining her chances for the first place. After finishing fourth at the 1932 Summer Olympics Gisolf lost interest in athletics and turned to field hockey.

4. Ruurd Leegstra (1877 - 1933)

With an HPI of 43.47, Ruurd Leegstra is the 4th most famous Indonesian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Ruurd Gerbens Leegstra (29 June 1877 in Wonokesoemo, Dutch East Indies – 17 January 1933 in Utrecht) was a Dutch rower who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics. He was part of the Dutch boat Minerva Amsterdam, which won the bronze medal in the eights.

5. Raema Lisa Rumbewas (1980 - 2024)

With an HPI of 42.43, Raema Lisa Rumbewas is the 5th most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Raema Lisa Rumbewas (10 September 1980 – 14 January 2024) was an Indonesian weightlifter. She was the country's first athlete to have won medals in three Olympic Games. She competed in the women's 48 kg at the 2000 Summer Olympics and won silver with 185.0 kg in total. She won another silver medal at the 2004 Games, this time competing in the women's 53 kg and lifting 210.0 kg in total. Another 210.0 kg was enough to win yet another silver medal at the 2006 World Weightlifting Championships in Santo Domingo. At the 2008 Summer Olympics she ranked 3rd in the 53 kg category, with a total of 206 kg. Rumbewas was a scholarship holder with the Olympic Solidarity program as of February 2003.

6. Nurfitriyana Saiman (b. 1962)

With an HPI of 35.32, Nurfitriyana Saiman is the 6th most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Nurfitriyana Saiman-Lantang (born March 7, 1962) is a retired Indonesian archer who became a coach after retiring as a player. Together with Lilies Handayani and Kusuma Wardhani she won a team silver medal at the 1988 Olympics, bringing the first ever Olympic medal to Indonesia. She also competed in the individual and team events at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics; her best individual result was a ninth place finish in 1988. In the 1980s, Saiman won multiple medals in individual recurve events at the SEA Games. After retiring from competitions she worked as a coach and prepared the national archery team for the 2016 Olympics.

7. Eko Yuli Irawan (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 28.35, Eko Yuli Irawan is the 7th most famous Indonesian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Eko Yuli Irawan (born 24 July 1989) is an Indonesian weightlifter who competes in the 61 kg and 62 kg category. Irawan has won four medals at the Summer Olympics, eight medals at world championships, and three medals at the Asian Games, including a gold in 2018, throughout his career. Irawan is the most decorated Indonesian athlete at the Olympics with two silver and two bronze medals. He is also Indonesia's first athlete to compete in five consecutive Olympic Games. After he qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympics he became an Indonesian athlete with the most appearances at the Olympics.

8. Rahmat Erwin Abdullah (b. 2000)

With an HPI of 22.53, Rahmat Erwin Abdullah is the 8th most famous Indonesian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Rahmat Erwin Abdullah (born 13 October 2000) is an Indonesian weightlifter. He is a two-time gold medalist in the men's 73 kg event at the World Weightlifting Championships (2021 and 2022). He won a bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics. He is a weightlifter competing in the 73 kg class since 2018 World Weightlifting Championships in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. He made his international debut at the 2017 Youth World Weightlifting Championships held in Bangkok, Thailand in the 69 kg class.

9. Sri Wahyuni Agustiani (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 21.89, Sri Wahyuni Agustiani is the 9th most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Sri Wahyuni Agustiani (born 13 August 1994) is an Indonesian weightlifter. Competing in the 48 kg body weight category she won silver medals at the 2013 Asian Championships, 2014 and 2018 Asian Games, and 2016 Summer Olympics.

10. Windy Cantika Aisah (b. 2002)

With an HPI of 19.96, Windy Cantika Aisah is the 10th most famous Indonesian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Windy Cantika Aisah (born 11 June 2002) is an Indonesian weightlifter. She won the gold medal at the 2019 SEA Games and the bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics in the women's 49 kg event.

People

Pantheon has 26 people classified as Indonesian athletes born between 1877 and 2004. Of these 26, 21 (80.77%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Indonesian athletes include Nurfitriyana Saiman, Eko Yuli Irawan, and Rahmat Erwin Abdullah. The most famous deceased Indonesian athletes include Xenia Stad-de Jong, Kusuma Wardhani, and Lien Gisolf. As of April 2024, 20 new Indonesian athletes have been added to Pantheon including Kusuma Wardhani, Ruurd Leegstra, and Raema Lisa Rumbewas.