Johan Wahyudi (Photo from PB Djarum website)
Indonesian badminton legend Johan Wahyudi, who forged a formidable partnership with Tjun Tjun, has passed away.
Together with Tjun Tjun, Johan had dominated the doubles scene in the 1970s. The pair were the winners of the men’s doubles title at the inaugural world championships in Malmo.
The pair were also six time winners of the All-England title as well as being the Asian Game gold medallists.
Johan passed away at 1pm Indonesian time due to illness.
Johan was born on 10th February 1953 in Malang, East Jawa. He ws introduced to the game by his father Mangku Prayinto, who himself was a provincial player.
In his teens, he trained at the Gajah Putih Malang Badminton Club during weekdays and at the Rajawali Surabaya Club during weekends. Upon finishing school, Johan trained full-time at Rajawali. The club was also known for producing the likes of eight time All-England champion Rudy Hartono.
In his first major national tournament final, Johan Wahyudi and his partner Ganda Wijaya were beaten in the final of the 1972 Wahono Cup by Christian Hadinata-Herman, but it was enough to earn him a national centralised training call-up.
It was here that he started to forge the successful partnership with Tjun Tjun. He was initially partnered with Hartono for the World Invitational Championships in Jakarta, but with Hartono opting to concentrate only on the singles, he was paired off with Tjun Tjun.
The pair stunned the badminton world by defeating the formidable Christian Hadinata-Ade Chandra pairing at the tournament. They went on to win the prestigious All-England in 1974 and again in 1975, 1077, 1978, 1979 and 1980.
Their hopes of winning a seventh All-England crown was dashed by Kartono-Rudy Heryanto in 1981. The pair retired from international badminton the following year.
Johan was convinced to return as the team manager of the Indonesian team to the All-England in 1986, that saw the emergence of the future Indonesian stars including Ardy Wiranata and Alan Budi Kusuma.
It was only in 2013, that Johan’s illustrious career in badminton was rewarded by the government during the National Sports Day.
Until his untimely death today, Johan was still involved in badminton. He was a key member in the youth talent identification scheme by PB Djarum.
Johan Wahyudi’s name will be remembered in the annals of badminton and his exploits remembered by the future generation of badminton players.
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