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Indri Sambaimana lost in the women’s boxing flyweight final, but she made history nonetheless.

Indri was the first Indonesian women’s boxer to reach the final round at the Southeast Asian Games since the sport was introduced in Manila in 2005, and she did so in her debut.

Two-time SEA Games winner Annie Albania of the Philippines, who also won gold at the Asian Indoor Games, triumphed in Wednesday’s final after the referee stopped the fight in the second round.

“[Albania] is really tough. I could still take it when she hit me on my stomach. But the next jabs were too hard to bear, especially when she hit me on the head,” Indri, 19, said. “I was trying to adjust my strategy to match her performance. But it was difficult because she has better skills and power.”

She was still happy with her achievements in her first international tournament despite the result. The North Sulawesi-born fighter only got into the sport four years ago.

“I lost now, but I’ll improve my skills and come back again,” Indri said. “Honestly, I was just trying to gain more experience in this SEA Games. I was surprised that I could go on until the final.”

National team coach Herman Suntolo was also encouraged by Indri’s performance. She was the only one of the four women’s boxers the Indonesian Amateur Boxing Federation sent to Laos who reached the gold-medal bout.

“She’s talented but still young, so we didn’t have any target for her in Laos,” Herman said. “We’re really proud of what she’s done and we’ll try to make her a better boxer.” Ami Afriatni