The Bridge Champions

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When heavy rains fall, the river behind Eddy Manoppo's house in Manado overflows. Water floods the living room where Eddy, Henky Lasu and their friends play bridge.

No matter. They just lift their legs onto their chairs and keep on playing.

"Bridge is like opium for us," Henky said when retelling the story of his youth to Tempo. "Wherever and whatever the circumstances, we always wanted to play it again."

Henky is 67 now. His hair has turned white, but he has not lost love for his favorite card game. Last month, he won the World Bridge Championships for the over-60 category in Sanya, China. He teamed up with Eddy, who is two years older than him. "I have played bridge for almost 50 years, but this is the first time Eddy and I became world champions," he said.

At first the game was just a hobby for Henky and Eddy. Then they fell in love with it and decided to study it deeper. In 1969 they stowed away on a ship to Surabaya so that they could follow the national championship of bridge in Semarang, Central Java.

That was the beginning of their national team careers. Amazingly, they almost placed second. But because they exceeded the specified time allotted per game, they had points cut and fell to fourth. Nevertheless, the result built their reputation.

Two years later, the bridge board organizer asked them to participate in the national championship in Bandung. Henky paired with Max Aguw and Eddy with his brother, Maurilius Manoppo alias Uttu. According to Henky, the split happened when they were practicing in Manado. The result was amazing. Eddy and his brother were champions. "If I am not mistaken, I was in third or fourth position," said Henky.

In the 1972 Asia-Pacific Championship, Henky and Eddy helped the Indonesian men's team take first. They repeated the feat for the next two years.

Unfortunately, the popularity of the Manoppo Brothers caused some gossip. Munawar, another player, said foreign players accused them of cheating. They were accused of using codes to exchange information. "Even the Indonesian players were spreading such rumors," he said.

The gossip widely circulated until they were brought to trial by the Bridge Federation of Asia-Pacific in New Delhi, India, in 1976. They were found guilty. "They questioned the Manoppo Brothers' method of playing," their peer Munawar said. "Eddy and his brother were not fluent in English, so they could not explain themselves in detail. Finally, they were punished by not being allowed to play bridge for five years."

"I was devastated by the decision," said Eddy. "But the incident made me eager to try prove that the accusations were not true. Pair me with anyone and I will show that I am still able to make a great achievement."

A chance to clear their reputation came in 1983, when, due to health conditions, Henky's partner could not play. The Indonesian Bridge Association Board called Eddy to pair with Henky. "We saw that Eddy is best player to be paired with Henky," said Munawar.

In the same year, Henky said, the association began a rigorous national training camp. The national team was taken around Europe for 56 days. "Our activities every day were trainings and discussions."

With the aid of the high-spirited players and coaching committee, Eddy was able to prove that he could excel regardless of who he was paired with. With Henky, he won the 9th and 10th World Top Invitational Pairs Tournament Cap Volmac in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 1995 and 1996.

Henky and Eddy also carried Indonesia to win the World Bridge Olympiad in Rhode Island, Greece, in 1996. Becoming world champions in China this year was the peak of their careers.

"From the beginning, Eddy and I always ended up in the runner-up position. Finally, this year, we were able in become world champions," said Henky.

That does not mean they will retire. "As long as we can still use our head to think, we will play bridge," said Henky. "In the game of bridge, the older you are, the more expert you get. In the senior category, competition is even tighter because the players are all former world champions."

Gadi Makitan, Rina Widiastuti