Richard Sam Bera (born 19 December 1971) is a former Indonesian swimmer, who specialized in sprint and middle-distance freestyle events. He is a three-time Olympian (1988, 1996, and 2000), a bronze medalist at the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until th ...

(1990), and a twenty-three times SEA Games gold-medalist (individuals and relays) since his debut in 1987. He is regarded as Indonesia's most successful swimmer in the sporting history. Up until 2015, Bera held several Indonesian and Southeast Asian Games records in sprint freestyle events from the

Southeast Asian Games The Southeast Asian Games, also known as the SEA Games, is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia. The games are under the regulation of the Southeast Asian Games Federation with supe ...

Career

Early years

Bera made his official debut, as Indonesia's youngest swimmer (aged 16), at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

. He failed to reach the top 16 final in any of his individual events, finishing forty-first in the newly introduced

50 m freestyle 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. It has attained significance throughout history in part because typical humans have five digits on eac ...

(24.67), forty-seventh in the

100 m freestyle The 100 metre freestyle is often considered to be the highlight ( Blue Ribbon event) of the sport of swimming, like 100 metres in the sport of Athletics. The first swimmer to break the one-minute barrier ( long course) was Johnny Weissmuller, ...

(53.59), forty-eighth in the 200 m freestyle (1:57.60), forty-third in the

400 m freestyle 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest co ...

(4:08.70), and thirty-seventh in the 200 m individual medley (2:13.90). Bera's name reached towards an early sport popularity when, as a 17-year-old, he earned his first-ever gold medal in the 100 m freestyle (52.19) and bronze in the newly introduced 50 m freestyle at the

1989 Southeast Asian Games The 1989 Southeast Asian Games ( ms, Sukan Asia Tenggara 1989), officially known as the 15th Southeast Asian Games, was a multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 20 to 31 August 1989 with 25 sports featured in the games. It was of ...

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

beating the then current champion of the distance, the great Ang Peng Siong of Singapore. One year later, at the

1990 Asian Games ) , Nations participating = 36 , Athletes participating = 6,122 , Events = 308 in 27 sports , Opening ceremony = 22 September 1990 , Closing ceremony = 7 October 1990 , Officially opened by = Yang Shangkun , Of ...

in Beijing, China, Bera won a bronze medal in the 100 m freestyle at 51.79, trailing China's

Xie Jun Xie Jun (born October 30, 1970) is a Chinese chess grandmaster and is not just the first Chinese female but the first Asian female to become a chess grandmaster. She had two separate reigns as Women's World Chess Champion, from 1991 to 1996 ...

by almost a full second.

College career

His college swimming career started off in Northern California when he attended

Foothill College Foothill College is a public community college in Los Altos Hills, California. It is part of the Foothill–De Anza Community College District. It was founded on January 15, 1957, and offers 79 Associate degree programs, 1 Bachelor's degree pro ...

until 1993. Bera was California Community College Champion in 50, 100, and 200 yd freestyle for two years. And in 1993, he set a new California and US National Junior College record in 100 yd freestyle with the time of 44.73. After his successful campaign in California, Bera accepted an

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United Stat ...

to attend the

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in t ...

Tempe, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Vale of Tempe , image_skyline = Tempeskyline3.jpg , imagesize = 260px , image_caption = Tempe skyline as s ...

, where he swam for the

Arizona State Sun Devils The Arizona State Sun Devils are the athletic teams that represent Arizona State University. ASU has nine men's and eleven women's varsity teams competing at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of ...

swimming and diving team under head coach Ernest Maglischo first and then Michael Chasson. While swimming for the Sun Devils, he received four All-American honors in the 100-yard freestyle, and all freestyle relays (200, 400, and 800). Bera was a regular finalist in 100 and 200 yards freestyle at Pac-10 Championships during his NCAA Division I career. And he capped it off in his final season with automatic qualifying time in 100 yd free for 1995 NCAA Championships. He was also a member of Sun Devils' 400 yd Medley Relay team that finished top 6 that year. After his senior season, Bera turned himself into a professional swimmer and then made a strong comeback for the Indonesian swimming team. At the

1995 Southeast Asian Games The 1995 Southeast Asian Games ( th, กีฬาแห่งเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ 1995, Kila haeng echeiy tawan oak cheing tai 1995), officially known as the 18th Southeast Asian Games, was a Southe ...

Chiang Mai, Thailand Chiang Mai (, from th, เชียงใหม่ , nod, , เจียงใหม่ ), sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the second largest city in ...

, Bera powered past the entire swimming field to strike a sprint freestyle double (both 50 and 100 m). Up until 2017, Bera remains the only Indonesian athlete in any sports who has ever earned the All-American Division 1 accolade.

International comebacks

After an eight-year absence since his first Olympics in 1988 as a 16-year-old, Bera qualified for his second Indonesian team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

. Although he was able to improve his standards from past tournaments, Bera still placed in a "middle-of-the-pack" in any of his individual events, finishing forty-fourth in the

(23.80), and thirty-fourth in the

(51.25). When his country

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

hosted the

1997 Southeast Asian Games The 1997 Southeast Asian Games ( id, Pesta Olahraga Asia Tenggara 1997), officially known as the 19th Southeast Asian Games ( id, Pesta Olahraga Asia Tenggara ke-19; the 19th SEA Games), was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event held in Jakarta, ...

in Jakarta, Bera was delighted and overwhelmed by the home crowd, as he edged out Filipino favourite Raymond Papa to defend his titles in both the 50 and 100 m freestyle. A feat that he repeated again at the

1999 Southeast Asian Games The 1999 Southeast Asian Games ( ms, Sukan Asia Tenggara 1999), officially known as the 20th Southeast Asian Games, was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event held in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. This was the first time Brunei hosted th ...

Brunei Darussalam Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely surrounded by the ...

and the

2001 Southeast Asian Games The 2001 Southeast Asian Games ( ms, Sukan Asia Tenggara 2001), officially known as the 21st Southeast Asian Games, was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This was the fifth time that Malaysia plays as SEA Games ...

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

. Shortly after the 1997 Games, Bera announced his retirement to concentrate on his job as an assistant coach for the

. On that same year, he graduated from the university with a Bachelor of Science degree in political science and a Bachelor of Arts in economics. But two years later, in 1999, Bera came home to Indonesia and made a decision to come out of retirement, and set up an official return to the Indonesian swimming team. At the

, he defended his 100 m freestyle title for the third straight time in a Games record-breaking time of 51.03, slashing 0.28 seconds off the mark set by his teammate Wisnu Wardhana in 1993. He also defended his 50 m freestyle crown when he swam 23.49, more than two-tenths of a second (0.20) outside his own 10-year-old record. In March 2000, Bera competed in the 6th Asian Swimming Championships in Busan, South Korea, and came away with a silver medal in 100 m freestyle with the time of 51.34, being edged out by home favorite Kim Min-suk for the Gold. At the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

in Sydney, Bera competed again in a sprint freestyle double since his remarkable comeback from Atlanta. After defending third straight titles from the SEA Games, his entry times of 23.49 (50 m freestyle) and 51.03 (100 m freestyle) were accredited under a

FINA FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...

B-standard. In the

, Bera placed thirty-seventh on the morning prelims. Swimming in heat six, he edged out Israel's

Yoav Bruck Yoav Bruck ( he, יואב ברוק; born March 6, 1972, in Lakhish) is a former swimmer from Israel, who competed in three Summer Olympics for his native country, starting in 1992. Bruck is Jewish. He finished 32nd in the 50m freestyle (23.72) ...

to take a sixth spot by exactly a tenth of a second (0.10) in 51.52. Two days later, in the

, Bera challenged seven other swimmers in heat five, including Bahamas'

Allan Murray Allan Murray (born 20 May 1982) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played with both Port Adelaide and St Kilda in the Australian Football League. He was recruited as the number 35 draft pick in the 2000 AFL Draft fro ...

, top 16 finalist in Atlanta four years earlier. He came up short in third place and forty-second overall at 23.54, just a small fraction off his entry time. At the

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

, Bera matched his own record of 51.03 to claim a 100 m freestyle title for the fourth straight time, edging out host nation's

Allen Ong Allen Ong Hou Ming (born 2 November 1979) is a Malaysian former swimmer, who specialised in sprint freestyle events. He is a two-time Olympian (2000 and 2004), a double gold medalist in the 100 m freestyle at the Southeast Asian Games (2001 an ...

by 0.28 of a second. Twelve years after winning a bronze medal, Bera competed for the second time, as a strong 31-year-old veteran, at the

2002 Asian Games The 2002 Asian Games ( ko, 2002년 아시아 경기대회/2002년 아시안 게임, Icheoni-nyeon Asia gyeonggi daehoe/Icheoni-nyeon Asian Geim), officially known as the XIV Asian Games ( ko, 제14회 아시아 경기대회/제14회 아시안 � ...

Busan, South Korea Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...

. He missed the podium twice in any of his swimming events, finishing fourth in the

(23.49), and fifth in the

(51.41). At the

2003 Southeast Asian Games The 2003 Southeast Asian Games ( vi, Đại hội Thể thao Đông Nam Á 2003), officially known as the 22nd Southeast Asian Games and also known as Vietnam 2003, was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event held from 5 to 13 December 2003 in Hano ...

Hanoi, Vietnam Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

, Bera only won a bronze medal in the 50 m freestyle at 23.73, finishing behind surprising Thai teenager

Arwut Chinnapasaen Arwut Chinnapasaen ( th, อาวุธ ชินนภาแสน; born December 3, 1980; nickname: 'X') is a Thai former swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. He claimed two gold medals in the 50 m freestyle at the Southeast As ...

and his Malaysian nemesis

by four-tenths of a second (0.40). Eighteen years since his debut, Bera made his final appearance as individual swimmer at the

2005 Southeast Asian Games The 2005 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 23rd Southeast Asian Games, was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event held in Manila, Philippines. This was the third time the Philippines hosted the games and its first time since 1991. ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...

. Surprisingly, even in the age of 34, he managed to win a total of five swimming medals: two golds in the 100 m freestyle (51.94) and in the medley relay (3:51.51), two silvers each in the 50 m freestyle (23.36) and in the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay (3:29.46), and a bronze in the 4 x 200 freestyle relay (7:43.56). Shortly after the Games, Bera announced his second, yet official retirement from swimming, ending a career with three Olympic appearances, and more than forty SEA Games medals to his collection. And up until

2014 Asian Games The 2014 Asian Games ( ko, 2014년 아시아 경기대회/2014년 아시안 게임, Icheon sip-sa nyeon Asia gyeonggi daehoe/Icheon sip-sa nyeon Asian Geim), officially known as the 17th Asian Games ( ko, 제17회 아시아 경기대회/제17회 ...

, Bera and fellow countrymen breast-stroker Wirmandi Sugriat, remain the last Indonesian swimmers who medaled at Asian Games.

Life after swimming

Since 2000, Bera has been working as a sports broadcaster for

MetroTV Metro TV is an Indonesian free-to-air television news network based in West Jakarta. It was established on 25 November 2000 and now has over 52 relay stations all over the country. It is owned by Surya Paloh who also owns the ''Media Indonesia ...

on the western outskirts of Jakarta. After that, he was placed as editor-in-chief for

FHM ''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...

and

Men's Fitness ''Men's Fitness'' was a men's magazine published by American Media, Inc and founded in the United States in 1987. The premier issue featured Michael Pare from the television series '' The Greatest American Hero''. The magazine's slogan was "How ...

Indonesia Magazines. Following his retirement from swimming, Bera still remained strong and faithful to his sporting regime. He became one of the founders of National Champions Millennium Aquatics Club, and later competed in both Olympic and sprint-distance triathlons across Indonesia, specifically in

Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...

. Bera was unofficially crowned as the father of modern triathlon in Indonesia, when he started to spread the "triathlon virus" in 2009. He was training to keep himself healthy by doing cycling and running along with swimming. At the time, barely anyone in Indonesia was aware of the sport of triathlon. Bera also attended both as a spectator and as an observer at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Watching the athlete procession from the stands during the

closing ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

, he reminisced an Olympic moment from his Twitter: "Seeing all those athletes down there, a bit emotional for me. I used to be down there". In 2015, Bera elected President of Indonesia Olympians Association and served until 2018. From 2015 to 2017, he was also part of the Board of Commissioner of Ministry of Youth and Sports' High-Performance Program called PRIMA. And then in May 2018, Bera was appointed by the Minister of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Indonesia, Mr. Imam Nahrawi, as ''Ketua Umum'' or Chairman of ''Badan Olahraga Profesional Indonesia'' (Indonesia Professional Sports Agency) or BOPI. This latest position is to see Bera as the head of the government's regulating as well as developing agency of all professional sports in the country, which include among others Indonesian football leagues, Indonesian Basketball League, and Indonesian MMA leagues. He is now married and living with his family in Jakarta.

References

External links