Australia's Pencak Silat community pushes promotion, hoping this martial art to reach Olympic

The Australian Pencak Silat Federation (APSF) held the Victorian championship while working toward getting the martial arts recognised as an Olympic sport.

Les Irawan (L), Joshah Muzir, and Haidah and Linda Puspasari (R) at the Victorian Pencak Silat Championship 2025. Credit: SBS Indonesian/Anne Parisianne

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Australia's Pencak Silat community pushes promotion, hoping this martial art to reach Olympic

SBS Indonesian

14:59Indonesian

The Australian Pencak Silat Federation of Victoria held its annual state championship on Sunday, 22 June. The competition included artistic forms and sparring matches, with separate divisions based on the participants’ ages.

Les Irawan, the president of APSF, federation's president, told SBS Indonesian that they're actively working toward getting pencak silat admitted as an Olympic sport. He said it's essential to continue organising competitions to make Pencak Silat well-known within Australia.

APSF is actively working toward getting pencak silat recognised as an Olympic sport, thus it is organising competitions to make Pencak Silat well-known within Australia. Credit: Supplied/Australian Pencak Silat Federation (APSF)

Competitor and coach Joshah Muzir from Bakti Negara shares this goal. He said he wants to see Pencak Silat included in the Olympics, alongside martial arts like taekwondo, karate, and judo. Muzir acknowledges the challenge ahead––most people outside Southeast Asia aren't familiar with this traditional martial art.

For some families, the championship focused on immediate benefits. Linda Puspasari brought her daughter Haidah to compete in the children's division. She said it was a valuable experience for her daughter to compete against other kids her age.

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