Badminton: Mixed Doubles, Men’s Singles Olympic Games 🥇
Chinese Pair Wins Olympic Mixed Doubles Gold, Shi Yuqi Exits Men’s Singles
PARIS, August 2 (Reuters) – China’s Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong triumphed over South Korea’s Kim Won-ho and Jeong Na-eun with scores of 21-8, 21-11 to claim the Olympic gold medal in mixed doubles badminton at the Porte de La Chapelle Arena on Friday.
Surrounded by a sea of red Chinese flags, Zheng knelt on the court and celebrated with outstretched arms as Yaqiong collapsed in joy before running into her coach’s embrace. The crowd roared in support with chants of “jiayou,” a Chinese expression of encouragement.
“Three years ago, we lost in the final, and since then we’ve been preparing for this moment,” Zheng said, referring to their silver medal finish in Tokyo with Huang. “Compared to Tokyo, where we worked hard, this time we played more strategically.”
Japan’s Arisa Higashino and Yuta Watanabe secured the bronze medal by defeating South Korea’s Chae Yu-jung and Seo Seung-jae 21-13, 22-20.
Badminton: Mixed Doubles. China’s hopes of winning a medal in men’s singles were dashed when Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn defeated world number one Shi Yuqi 21-12, 21-10 in the quarter-finals.
Despite this setback, China, which has dominated badminton with 20 Olympic gold medals since the sport’s inclusion, remains a strong contender in the other events. Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia overcame Denmark’s fourth-ranked Anders Antonsen 21-17, 21-15 in a gripping match that saw over 30 shuttlecocks used.
Fellow Dane Viktor Axelsen, the reigning men’s singles champion and world number two, avenged his compatriot’s defeat by defeating Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew 21-9, 21-17.
REAL TEST
India’s 14th-ranked Lakshya Sen secured a 19-21, 21-15, 21-12 victory over former world number two Chou Tien-Chen of Taiwan. “This is something I never dreamed of,” Sen said, highlighting that he is India’s last hope for badminton success in Paris. “The real test starts here – it’s time to recover and prepare for the next match.”
In the men’s doubles semi-finals, Taiwan’s Wang Chi-lin and Lee Yang defeated Denmark’s Kim Astrup and Anders Rasmussen 18-21, 21-17, 21-10 to advance to the final on Sunday.
In the women’s doubles, Malaysia’s 12th-ranked pair Thinaah Muralitharan and Pearly Tan pushed the tournament favorites, China’s Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan, to their limits in their semi-final match. The Chinese duo ultimately prevailed with scores of 21-12, 18-21, 21-15. Nevertheless, Muralitharan and Tan advanced further in the tournament than any other Malaysian women’s pair in Olympic history.
“We just wanted to enjoy every moment on the court. That’s something we won’t regret,” said Muralitharan. “They (Chen and Jia) are mentally very strong, which is why they are number one. It’s something we still need to learn from them.”
China’s Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning defeated Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida 21-16, 21-19, setting up a bronze medal match against the Malaysians on Saturday.
