Pencak Silat Becomes the Largest Sport at Muhammadiyah Games 2026 at UMS

Pencak silat emerged as one of the sports with the highest number of participants at the 1st Muhammadiyah Games 2026, held at Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta (UMS). The significant responsibility of organizing and technically managing the competition was entrusted to the UMS Tapak Suci student club (UKM).

Person in Charge of the pencak silat discipline at the 1st Muhammadiyah Games, Ulin Niam Annashir, said that the trust did not come without reason, but was built on UKM Tapak Suci UMS's long experience in managing major pencak silat events at the national level.

"Looking at our previous experience in pencak silat, particularly through Tapak Suci, we once held a national tournament in January 2024 and alhamdulillah it was a success with more than a thousand athletes," he said on Sunday (17/5/2026).

He explained that UMS Tapak Suci students' experience as organizers of major national events, including the National Student Sports Week (POMNAS) and the Pre-National Sports Week (Pra-PON) at UMS's Edutorium, was also a contributing factor to that trust.

"Our Tapak Suci UMS members have previously served as organizers at major events, so they already have experience in competition management," he added.

Preparations for the 1st Muhammadiyah Games began in early March 2026, before Ramadan, with the process running for approximately three to four months.

"From forming the committee and drafting the program to designing activities and handling technical competition matters, we began preparing from early March," he explained.

In this edition of the Muhammadiyah Games, the pencak silat discipline drew a total of 694 participants from various Regional Muhammadiyah Boards (Pimda) and Muhammadiyah and Aisyiyah Higher Education Institutions (PTMA) across Indonesia.

"For the silat discipline, this is one of the sports with the most participants, with 694 athletes from 33 Pimda and around 43 PTMA," he said.

The farthest participants, he noted, came from eastern Indonesia, specifically Sorong in Southwest Papua. The presence of athletes from across the country is a testament to the high enthusiasm for pencak silat in this inaugural Muhammadiyah Games.

Even so, Ulin acknowledged there were a number of challenges during the organizing process, particularly around coordination and the digital registration system.

"The challenge was that participants came from many different regions. Some still had difficulty with communication and using the digital registration system, so we had to put in extra effort to assist and guide them," he said.

The high number of pencak silat participants, according to Ulin, is closely tied to Tapak Suci's presence in schools from an early age through extracurricular activities.

"Many athletes first encountered Tapak Suci in primary school through extracurricular programs. From that love of the sport, they gradually developed into competitive athletes and are still actively competing today," he said.

Looking ahead, UKM Tapak Suci UMS hopes to continue improving its service quality and carrying out evaluations so that it remains trusted to manage future major Muhammadiyah events.

"We will continue to evaluate every activity so that things can be even better going forward. We also always emphasize wholehearted service to participants, officials, and referee judges alike," he concluded.

Writer: Dwi Kurniadi

Editor: Maysali Sudarwati

Translator: Farizal Luqman Majid