Sometimes the decisions over who makes the national team in a specific country can seem controversial, especially since most programs do not provide explanations to the public and the fans. Sometimes, gymnasts are removed from the teams because they are unable to heal from nagging injuries or because they have trouble getting to the required physical level. Attitude problems and conflicts with coaches can be grounds for removal as well. However, the Indonesian gymnastics federation went further and allegedly removed a gymnast for losing virginity.
Shalfa Avrila Siani who was on the national team and on the squad for the SEA Games was kicked off in November. The gymnast and her mother, Ayu Kurniawati, claimed that the reason told to them by the national team coach, Indra Sibarani, was that the gymnast was no longer a virgin. Ayu then asked her daughter to undergo a virginity test and gave the results stating that the gymnast’s hymen was intact to the coaches. According to the mother, that result was rejected and the coaches demanded the test to be done again, in a different hospital. After that, the gymnast and her mother decided to go public.
To give you some context, a virginity test is not a valid medical procedure. This invasive and embarrassing procedure does not help diagnosing or treating any actual medical conditions. In addition, it does not actually tell anything about whether the female that is being examined ever had vaginal sex. Some women have their hymen as a result of some non-sexual activity, such as riding a bike. Others might have it intact even after having vaginal sex as hymens can be quite stretchy. And, of course, the test gives absolutely zero information about a person’s sexual experiences that did not include vaginal penetration.
Indra Sibarani, the coach, commented to the media, saying that she never required a virginity test and the reasons for the gymnast’s removal from the team were due to lower performance and issues with her attitude. However, when listing all the ways in which the gymnast behaved wrongly, the coaches included things like dating and potentially having sex and getting pregnant. According to Indra, one of the reasons for removal was low placement at the National Games where Shalfa finished 13th on balance beam and 7th on floor:
“No achievement, but still made the SEA Games? That’s convenient! It’s one thing to have a high achievement, but there is no way she could have made the finals at the SEA Games”.
The letter that was sent to the gymnast explaining her removal contained the following reasons:
First, it claimed that Shalfa was not maintaining the discipline in recovery. She was not able to adhere to the diet to maintain her weight. Shalfa, according to Zahari, one of the national team coaches, would also break the dormitory rules. Zahari told JawaPos:
“During Pre-National games I told her: as a national team athlete, do not get defeated by the non-national team athlete. It turned out her performance was bad. Also, we have a rule that every athlete can not go out at night, no dating, and no staying at a male’s house. That’s where she committed a disciplinary violation”.
According to Zahari, another issue was that Shalfa asked to stay out to participate in a study group and was supposed to call a cab but was actually picked up by her boyfriend:
“And then she went to Malang [a town in East Java]. We don’t know what she did. She didn’t even ask. I’m emotional. Why did she mention about the virginity, even though we backed her up so that she wouldn’t be kicked out? That is an internal problem with East Java, it had nothing to do with the national team. In that letter, there is no mention of virginity. We also returned her to her parents so that she is safe. We don’t have any energy to look after a kid that liked to go out at night and go home in the morning. If we kept her, and something happened, like for example she got pregnant what are we going to do?”
The quotes in the article are from JawaPos.com. Translation from Indonesian by AG.
