Rudy Hartono

Rudy Hartono Kurniawan (born Nio Hap Liang (Chinese: 梁海量; pinyin: Liáng Hǎiliàng);[2] 18 August 1949) is a former Indonesian badminton player who won the men's singles title at the prestigious All-England Championship eight times,[3] seven times consecutively (1968–1974)[4] and at World Championship in 1980 on his only attempt at this title. He is one of the most famous players in the history of the sport and is considered to be one of the greatest badminton players of all time.

Rudy Hartono Kurniawan
Personal information
Birth name	Nio Hap Liang 梁海量[1]
Country	Indonesia
Born	18 August 1949 Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia[1]
Height	1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Handedness	Right
Event	Men's singles
Medal record Men's badminton Representing  Indonesia World Championships 1980 Jakarta Men's singles Thomas Cup 1970 Kuala Lumpur Team 1973 Jakarta Team 1976 Bangkok Team 1979 Jakarta Team 1967 Jakarta Team 1982 London Team Asian Games 1970 Bangkok Men's team

Personal life

Hartono was born on 18 August 1949 as Nio Hap Liang in Surabaya, the third of eight children. His sister Jeanne Utama Dewi is a five-time national champion and former Indonesia Uber Cup team member. The young Hartono embraced many types of sports – athletics, volleyball, football, and even roller skating – but his athletic path soon led him towards badminton.[2] Rudy married Jane Anwar in 1976 and they have two children.

Badminton career

Hartono joined the National Training Center in 1965 in order to help his national team in the upcoming Thomas Cup. As a member of the 1966-1967 Thomas Cup squad, he won all of his matches, but Indonesia was beaten by Malaysia in a highly controversial final in which play was suspended due to the unruly crowd.

A year later, at his first try at the All England Championships, the 18-year-old Indonesian became the youngest ever champion of the tournament, beating Tan Aik Huang from Malaysia who had been the winner two years earlier. From then on, Hartono dominated the event like very few had before, winning eight titles in all, from 1968 to 1976. His eight titles at the All England earned Hartono a mention in the Guinness Book of Records.

Hartono defeated Svend Pri in the finals of the 1972 Munich Games in which badminton was presented as a demonstration sport.[5] Hartono was active in Thomas Cup competition and played for his country at the event from 1967 to 1982. 1970,[6] 1973,[7] The 1976, and 1979 Thomas Cup were resounding successes for Hartono and his team, with Indonesia sweeping four straight titles.

Post-retirement

Rudy became involved with the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI), holding different positions such as Chairman of Development Affairs until 2006. He is currently a member of PBSI’s Board of Honour. Hartono also played an active role within the Badminton World Federation (BWF). He was a member of the Council in 1985-1986, and later from 1994 to 2009. Hartono’s image and reputation led the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to appoint him as a Goodwill Ambassador for Indonesia.

Achievements

Olympic Games (demonstration)

Men's Singles

• 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany

1972 Summer Olympics – Men's Singles
Round	Opponent	Score	Result
First Round	Jamie Paulson [8]	15–12, 14–18, 15–3	Win
Semifinals	Sture Johnsson [4]	15–2, 15–4	Win
Final	Svend Pri [3]	15–6, 15–1	Gold

IBF World Championships

Men's Singles

• 1980 IBF World Championships at the Istora Senayan in Jakarta, Indonesia

1980 IBF World Championships – Men's Singles
Round	Opponent	Score	Result
First round	-	-	Bye
Second round	Jalani Sidek	15–9, 15–2	Win
Third round	Chris Kinard	15–7, 15–3	Win
Quarterfinal	Ray Stevens	15–1, 15–3	Win
Semifinal	Hadiyanto	15–6, 15–8	Win
Final	Liem Swie King	15–9, 15–9	Gold

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
1968	All England	Tan Aik Huang	15–12, 15–9	Champion
1968	Singapore Pesta	Darmadi	9–15, 15–7, 10–15	Runner-up
1968	Northern Indian	Muljadi	15–2, 15–10	Champion
1969	All England	Darmadi	15–1, 15–3	Champion
1969	US Open	Muljadi	15–9, 15–12	Champion
1969	Canadian Open	Sture Johnsson	15–11, 15–1	Champion
1969	Singapore Open	Muljadi		Champion
1970	All England	Svend Pri	15–7, 15–1	Champion
1971	Western Indian	Muljadi	15–11, 15–12	Champion
1971	Denmark Open	Ippei Kojima	14–18, 15–14, 15–11	Champion
1971	All England	Muljadi	15–1, 15–5	Champion
1971	Canadian Open	Ippei Kojima	15–7, 15–2	Champion
1971	US Open	Muljadi	8–15, 9–15	Runner-up
1972	All England	Svend Pri	15–9, 15–4	Champion
1972	Jakarta Open	lie Sumirat	15–4, 15–5	Champion
1973	All England	Christian Hadinata	15–4, 15–2	Champion
1973	Denmark Open	Flemming Delfs	17–14, 15–12	Champion
1974	All England	Punch Gunalan	8–15, 15–9, 15–10	Champion
1975	All England	Svend Pri	11–15, 14–17	Runner-up
1975	Denmark Open	Svend Pri	12–15, 15–0, 15–7	Champion
1976	All England	Liem Swie King	15–7, 15–7	Champion
1978	All England	Liem Swie King	10–15, 3–15	Runner-up
1980	English Masters	Liem Swie King	11–15, 3–15	Runner-up
1980	Swedish Open	Prakash Padukone	15–9, 12–15, 1–15	Runner-up
1981	Japan Open	Lius Pongoh	15–9, 15–8	Champion

Men's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1968	Northern Indian	Indratno	Tan Yee Khan Punch Gunalan	3–15, 15–6, 15–7	Champion
1969	Singapore Open	Indratno	Yeo Ah Seng Lee Wah Chin		Champion
1971	Western Indian	Indra Gunawan	Muljadi Sumiratta	18–13, 15–12	Champion
1971	Denmark Open	Indra Gunawan	Ng Boon Bee Punch Gunalan	15–11, 4–15, 8–15	Runner-up
1971	All England	Indra Gunawan	Ng Boon Bee Punch Gunalan	5–15, 3–15	Runner-up

Mixed doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1969	Western Indian	Rafla Latif	Indra Gunawan Sunila Ape	15–12, 15–13	Champion

Awards

• 1986 – BWF Herbert Scheele Award
• 1997 – BWF Hall of Fame

Sources

Smash - Rudy Hartono His profile in Badmintoncentral His profile in Tokohindonesia (in Indonesian)

His profile in KONI (in Indonesian) His profile in Bulutangkis.com (in Indonesian) Change of court for Rudy Hartono

Cited

1. "60 Years of Asian Heroes: Rudy Hartono". TIME Magazine. November 13, 2006. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
2. Suryadinata, Leo (2012). Southeast Asian Personalities of Chinese Descent: A Biographical Dictionary, Volume I & II. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. pp. 455–7. ISBN 978-981-4345-21-7.
3. "NewspaperSG - Terms and Conditions". Retrieved 2017-02-23.
4. "NewspaperSG - Terms and Conditions". Retrieved 2017-02-23.
5. "NewspaperSG - Terms and Conditions". Retrieved 2017-02-23.
6. "NewspaperSG - Terms and Conditions". Retrieved 2017-02-23.
7. "NewspaperSG - Terms and Conditions". Retrieved 2017-02-23.