At the Tokyo Paralympics, David, who was born with functional troubles with his slightly folded right arm, won a bronze medal along with Montenegrin contestant Filip Radovic, who is 21.
By
Adrian Fajriansyah
·5 minutes read
KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI
David Jacobs
No longer young, Indonesian Paralympic table tennis player David Jacobs, 44, has proven his ability to maintain his top level achievements in the world. David’s consistency for about 20 years has been due to discipline in maintaining his lifestyle, training and avoiding any sense of despair.
David was one of the four players aged over 40 out of a total of 12 athletes participating in the TT10 table tennis event, the class with the lowest level of impairment, at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020. The rest were athletes aged 20-30. However, age and physical limitations posed no barrier to David’s performance.
At the Tokyo Paralympics, David, who was born with functional troubles with his slightly folded right arm, won a bronze medal along with Montenegrin contestant Filip Radovic, who is 21.
David, as the second-ranked athlete, lost 2-3 (9-11, 8-11, 11-3, 11-5, 8-11) to French player Mateo Boheas, 24, in the semifinals at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, Japan, on Saturday (28/8/2021). Nonetheless, the semifinal result enabled David to repeat his achievement at the London Paralympics 2012.
“My target was, in fact, only to do my best at the Paralympics 2020. As I’m no longer young, I was just striving to offer the best performance in training as well as competing. So, I’m very much grateful for this bronze,” said David when contacted from Jakarta.
David’s achievement brought Indonesia’s total gain to one silver and two bronze medals. The result put Indonesia’s world ranking at 47th on Sunday (29/8).
Grateful for the blessing
This time, David’s performance has completed his collection of awards, from gold, silver to bronze medals, at national, Southeast Asian, Asian and world events in general and disabled categories since 2000. The career consistency and achievements of this athlete, born in Makassar, South Sulawesi, constitute the fruits of his life, which has always been filled with gratefulness for God’s blessing in the form of his table tennis talent.
David takes care of his gift through discipline in maintaining his lifestyle so as not to do things at random while training, competing and outside the contest arena. He controls his daily food intake to keep his body weight on track. Routine training takes at least two hours daily outside the training center and at least five hours at the training center.
Kompas
David Jacobs
Besides technical training, David is engaged in extra training for physical maintenance, like weight lifting, running or swimming at least once a week. Outside training sessions, the athlete, named the World’s Best Player by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) for the general category in 2015, spends most of his time together with his family.
“For me, table tennis is a hobby that has finally become a source of income. Therefore, as I’ve chosen to become an athlete, I should be committed to maintaining my capabilities and physical condition. I should know when to train, to be relaxed and to take a rest. Otherwise, my career will soon be finished. This is my way of being grateful for God’s blessing,” he said.
But his parents, Jan Jacobs and Neelce Samallo Jacobs, always gave him encouragement so that he would never give up.
Family support has also provided a great stimulus for David. Born with a disability, teenage David was rejected when enrolling in an elite club in Senayan, Central Jakarta. The reason was that the club only accepted professional players. But his parents, Jan Jacobs and Neelce Samallo Jacobs, always gave him encouragement so that he would never give up.
Eventually, David succeeded in focusing on his career as a national table tennis player in the general category in early 2000. At the national level, he seized gold in men’s doubles at the South Sumatra National Sports Festival (PON) 2004, bronze in the men’s singles event at the East Kalimantan PON 2008 and bronze at the West Java PON 2016. At the international level, David won bronze in men’s doubles at the Malaysian SEA Games 2001, bronze in the men’s doubles and men’s team event at the Vietnam SEA Games 2003, silver in men’s doubles at the Philippine SEA Games 2005, bronze in the men’s doubles and men’s team event at the Thai SEA Games 2007 and bronze in the men’s team event at the Laotian SEA Games 2009.
In the post-2009 period, David quit the Indonesian national team and joined the Indonesian National Paralympic Committee (NPC) in 2010. Thereafter, his career soared with a collection of 14 gold medals at the ASEAN Para Games from 2011 to 2017, two gold and three silver medals at the Asian Championship from 2013 to 2019; three golds, one silver and one bronze at the Asian Para Games from 2010 to 2018; and the peak gain of two bronze medals at the Paralympics in 2012 and 2020.
KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO
David Jacobs
David said that with his physical impairment, he had, for a time, lost his self-confidence because he was frequently mocked. When he first practiced table tennis, many people belittled his ability. But he was thankful to have parents, a wife, children and an extended family that always accompanied him, gave him motivation and prayed for him.
“With physical limitations, many people certainly underestimate me, even make fun of me. In order to prove them wrong, speaking to them is not enough, but my achievements serve as concrete evidence.”
“I hope this can be followed by the disabled younger generation, who should not be ashamed of their conditions. Limitations pose no barrier to the pursuit of achievements. Parents with disabled children should not be embarrassed, because achievements are open to all groups of people to strive for,” said David.
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