Seven medals. One nation. One coach. In June 2026, Indonesia stood on the podium at the first-ever World Yogasana Championship in Ahmedabad, India, with every medal-winning athlete trained under the same Bali-based teacher who now certifies students on this side of the world. For UK practitioners weighing up where to complete a hot yoga teacher training, that result is worth a closer look.
What Happened at the World Yogasana Championship 2026
The World Yogasana Sports Federation Championships ran from 4 to 8 June 2026 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, marking the first edition of the event on this scale. Indonesia’s delegation returned with one gold, two silver and four bronze medals, seven in total, all won by athletes trained through YogaFX under Mr. Ian Terry, an E-RYT 500 instructor and the Master Trainer officially appointed to the Republic of Indonesia Yogasana Sports Federation.
The results build on a run of international placings for the same group of athletes over the past year. Combined across national, Asian and world-level events, YogaFX-trained competitors have now collected 12 medals: five gold, three silver and four bronze.
| Athlete | YogaFX Graduate Year | Ahmedabad 2026 Result |
|---|---|---|
| Ivara Candra Kartika | 2023 | Gold + Bronze |
| Arkan Fauzan Riyanto | 2022 | 2 Silver + 3 Bronze |
| Slamet Ariyanto | 2024 | Team Manager, Indonesian Yogasana squad |
Ivara Candra Kartika arrived in Ahmedabad off the back of a gold medal at the FORNAS VIII Indonesia Championships in July 2025 and a silver at the Asian Yogasana Championships in the United Arab Emirates the following month. Arkan Fauzan Riyanto’s five medals in Ahmedabad followed three consecutive FORNAS gold wins. Slamet Ariyanto, meanwhile, now serves as Chairman of the Yoga Practitioner Association of Indonesia (PPYNI) and as Team Manager for the national Yogasana squad, a role that puts a YogaFX graduate directly in charge of selecting and preparing Indonesia’s future competitors.
The Training Behind Competitive Yogasana Performance
Yogasana as a competitive discipline asks for a specific combination of postural precision, strength and holding capacity, closer to gymnastics judging than to a typical studio class. That demand lines up with what research on Bikram-style hot yoga has already documented. A 2013 study published in PubMed found practitioners gained roughly 20% more posterior chain strength alongside measurable flexibility and body composition changes after regular practice, exactly the physical base competitive yogasana rewards, built on the same 26 postures and their strength demands every Bikram-trained student practises.
A broader 2025 systematic review covering 43 studies and 942 participants reinforced this, linking consistent hot yoga practice to improved flexibility and bone density alongside general well-being gains. None of this replaces sport-specific coaching, but it explains why a strong Original Hot Yoga foundation gives athletes a head start when they move into formal Yogasana competition training.
From the Training Room in Bali to the World Stage
All three athletes came through YogaFX‘s teacher training programme in Bali before moving into competitive Yogasana. The programme itself is not built as a sport-specific academy: it is a hybrid Bikram Hot 26&2 Yoga Teacher Training, combining online pre-course study with a six-day practical intensive in Seminyak, Bali, capped at 19 students per intake, leading to certification (RYT 200 and Bikram Hot 26&2 certification).
For UK-based students, the relevant point is not that YogaFX trains competitive athletes as its main business. It is that the same dialogue-based teaching method, the same posture precision standards and the same instructor, Mr. Ian Terry, who has more than 12,000 hours of hands-on teacher training experience, are what a UK student enrols into. Whether the goal is competitive performance as an athlete, a teaching career, or simply a deeper personal practice, the training standard is the same one that produced seven world championship medals.
Yogasana’s Push Toward Olympic Recognition
Yogasana’s growth as a competitive sport is part of a wider push, led by Indian sporting bodies, to have yoga recognised on the Olympic programme. Leadership at the World Yogasana Sports Federation has publicly discussed a goal of seeing the Yogasana Championship included as an Olympic test event by 2032, ahead of a hoped-for full Olympic Games event status in 2036. That timeline is an ambition stated by federation officials rather than a confirmed Olympic decision, and readers should treat it as a direction of travel rather than a fixed date.
What is already confirmed is the sport’s rapid internationalisation: events now run across India, the UAE and beyond, with national federations, including Indonesia’s, actively recruiting and training competitive squads. Mr. Ian Terry’s collaboration with international sporting bodies, including a meeting with the UAE Minister of Sports at the Asian Yoga Federation Championship in Dubai, sits inside that same growth.
YogaFX and Mr. Ian Terry: The Coaching Behind the Medals
Mr. Ian Terry founded YogaFX after five years of direct training alongside Bikram Choudhury during the nine-week Bikram trainings, and has since taught more than 1,500 graduates from over 80 countries. His appointment as Master Trainer of the Republic of Indonesia Yogasana Sports Federation, confirmed in June 2026, formalised a coaching relationship with the national squad that had already been producing international medals for two years.
For UK practitioners, the practical route in is the same hybrid YTT programme these athletes completed, run from YogaFX‘s Bali studios in Seminyak and Canggu. Full Bikram teacher training cost breakdown runs from USD 1,699 to 2,799 depending on accommodation (roughly GBP equivalent at current exchange rates). Students interested in training under the same instructor who coached Indonesia’s medal-winning Yogasana squad can reach the team directly via WhatsApp to discuss upcoming intake dates.
Independent training academy, not an official Bikram Choudhury Teacher Training programme.
Common Questions
What is Yogasana and how is it different from a regular yoga class?
Yogasana is a competitive sport version of yoga, judged on posture precision, control and holding time, similar in structure to gymnastics scoring. A regular yoga or hot yoga class has no judging or scoring; it is a health and practice-focused session rather than a competitive event.
Who are the Indonesian athletes who won medals at the World Yogasana Championship 2026?
Ivara Candra Kartika (gold and bronze) and Arkan Fauzan Riyanto (two silver, three bronze) won Indonesia’s seven medals in Ahmedabad. Both trained through YogaFX under Mr. Ian Terry, alongside Slamet Ariyanto, now the Indonesian Yogasana Team Manager.
Can UK students train under the same coach as these medal-winning athletes?
Yes. UK students enrol in the same hybrid Bikram Hot 26&2 Yoga Teacher Training that Ivara, Arkan and Slamet completed, taught directly by Mr. Ian Terry in Seminyak, Bali, with online pre-course study completed from the UK beforehand.
Will Yogasana become an Olympic sport?
Federation officials have stated a goal of an Olympic test event by 2032 and full Olympic status by 2036, but neither has been confirmed by the International Olympic Committee. It remains a stated ambition rather than a scheduled Olympic event at this stage.
What certification do YogaFX teacher training graduates receive?
Graduates receive certification: RYT 200 through Yoga Alliance and a Bikram Hot 26&2 Yoga certification, completed over a six-day practical intensive in Bali after online pre-course study.
