Indonesia has its very first Olympic gymnast

STORY: Twenty-four year-old Rifda Irfanaluthfi has had challenge after challenge on the road to her dream.

The athlete was hospitalized after a sharp landing in Belgium.

Then came good news, and bad news.

First, the bad news: she was told she had to undergo surgery.

But hours later, she found out that she'd become the first Indonesian gymnast to qualify for the Olympics.

:: Graphic Title: Trailblazers

:: Rifda Irfanaluthfi, Indonesian Olympic Gymnast

"I was panicking. I don't think I made it, I thought. But then all of a sudden my friend came and said, 'You made it!'."

Its been almost two years since her surgery.

After countless hours of daily practice, Rifda is getting ready for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

She will compete in artistic gymnastics, including events on the beam, vault, and uneven bars.

Ranked 52nd globally, Rifda always aspired to be a professional athlete.

However, Indonesia is known more for excelling in sports like badminton and weightlifting.

Rifda hopes her debut at the Games will raise the profile of gymnastics in Southeast Asia, where it's often overlooked.

She jokes that gymnastics is so unknown in Indonesia,

that some people still think she does aerobics.

And Rifda says that she only received enough government support after qualifying.

"For now, I thank God that the government support is good, although previously there was a lot that was lacking, but because I made it to the Olympics, they started to pay more attention to me. I do appreciate the support, which at first I felt was unsatisfactory, but it’s much better now.”

Longtime coach and former gymnast Eva Butar-Butar agrees-

-she says support as it stands now makes it hard for Indonesian athletes to reach the global stage.

::Eva Butar-Butar, Gymnastics Coach

"It's not because we don't have the athletes, physically our gymnasts are ideally small in stature and indeed what is needed is a small body, but it's the lack of support system that makes it difficult for Indonesian athletes to reach the world level, as well as their mentality."

Rifda attributes much of her success to her parents,

who proudly display her athletic achievements at home.

But her mother Yulies Andriana says building her daughter's dream wasn't always easy.

:: Yulies Andriana, Rifda's Mother

"What made me sad is her clothes. I couldn't afford costly training and gymnastics clothes, so we always had to thrift for secondhand clothes in the market. It was sad, but it was all I could do. Whatever I could do, whatever extent or financial effort could be done, I did."

Yulies says Rifda faces another challenge in Indonesia.

Religious conservatives have harassed Rifda online for wearing leotards, labeling her photos as 'pornographic'.

:: Jakarta, Indonesia

Despite that, Rifda is spending the weeks ahead of Paris hunkered down and training in a rundown gym in East Jakarta-

-honing her skills on an old balance beam and worn-out mats while managing her knee injury.

Rifda admits she is nervous to be up against other gymnasts, but for her, going for gold isn't the point.

"Other athletes are brilliant, and I'm not. I do still think like that sometimes, but I tell myself that I can do it too, I'm also capable. For this Olympics, my target isn't a gold medal, so I should just relax."