November 13, 2021, 12:37 PM
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Indonesian President Joko Widodo, more commonly known as Jokowi, was seen donning a full gear superbike racer's suit, during an opening ceremony of a superbike street circuit on Nov. 12.
More importantly, he also took the opportunity to try out the circuit on his customised Kawasaki bike.
Jokowi tries out new circuit
The Indonesian president posted a photo on his Twitter account stating that he was trying out the new 4.32 km Mandalika International Street Circuit.
Sirkuit Mandalika sempat diguyur hujan hari ini, saya tetap turun dan menjajalnya dengan sepeda motor saya.
— Joko Widodo (@jokowi) November 12, 2021
Rupanya begini yang disebut sirkuit balapan itu. Tikungan-tikungannya tajam sekali. Ada 17 tikungan. Kalau untuk pembalap mungkin enggak ada masalah. Tapi saya? 😀 pic.twitter.com/yqXt11CswV
"It was raining at the Mandalika Circuit today when I went down and tried it out with my motorbike," he wrote.
He added that the race circuit has 17 sharp bends.
"For racers, (the bends) might not be a problem. But for me?"
Indonesia's Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir had also uploaded a video of the president trying out the circuit on Nov. 12.
Jokowi was seen wearing all-black gear, from his helmet to his jacket, gloves and shoes, walking towards a green Kawasaki W175 bike with an initial "R1" on the bike's fairing, CNN Indonesia reported.
Meanwhile, in the video, Thohir said that he will only "flag off" the trial.
Circuit to host two international events
According to CNN Indonesia, the new Mandalika International Street Circuit in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, will be used for the 2021 Superbike World Championship (WSBK) taking place from Nov. 19 to 21.
In his speech to mark the circuit's opening, other than hosting the WSBK, Jokowi said that the circuit will also be used for the Grand Prix motorcycle racing in March 2022, Antara reported.
Top image via Jokowi/Twitter by Agus Suparto
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