Did Malaysian Media Misreport Rizki Juniansyah’s Ritual Of Washing Mom’s Feet & Drinking The Water?
Indonesian weightlifter Rizki Juniansyah shared that he has a pre-game ritual with his mother.
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It’s not unusual for athletes to have their own lucky rituals before a big game. One of the Olympic athletes, Indonesian weightlifter Rizki Juniansyah, recently won the men’s 73kg weightlifting gold and set a new Olympic record.
He usually credits his wins to a sweet ritual he shared with his mother.
In a video with Visa Indonesia, 21-year-old Rizki shared that he kisses his mother’s hands and washes her feet before training and before he competes.
He said the ritual was his way of honouring his mother who has supported him from day one.
However, what happens after the kissing and washing divides netizens. Several news outlets such as Buletin TV3, Berita Harian, Harian Metro, CNN Indonesia, and IWF reported that Rizki allegedly drinks the water used to wash his mother’s feet.
The claim that Rizki drank the water was also repeated by Indonesia’s business magazine Marketeers, citing Rizki’s alleged speech from Indonesia’s National Olympic Council (NOC) on 10 August 2024.
He allegedly performed the same ritual before competing at IWF World Cup 2024.
On the website of Indonesia’s Communications and Information Ministry, an article was shared of Rizky’s win which also included the “drinking” bit.
In the article dated 9 August, Rizky said: “Saya ada dalam Rahim mama, mama yang terbaik. Setiap saya cium kaki dan cuci kaki mama serta meminumnya, alhamdulillah selalu berkah.”
(I was in my mother’s womb, my mom is the best. I will kiss and wash my mom’s feet and drink it. Alhamdulillah, it’s always been a blessing.)
While netizens debated the truthfulness of the reports, Rizki has not addressed the claims on his Instagram. Who knows, maybe he trolled some media outlets while giving interviews.
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