In a contest notable for its high-quality rallies and stunning attacking and defensive play from both competitors, the Chinese star kept his country’s stranglehold on the Olympic gold medal with a 21-18, 21-18 triumph.
Advertisement
Viktor Axelsen will play former Olympic champion Lin Dan of China for the bronze medal tomorrow.
Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei shrugged off eight years of Olympic heartbreak yesterday to defeat his nemesis Lin Dan 15-21, 21-11, 22-20 and reach the final of the men’s badminton after another classic encounter.
A somewhat stilted English translation of the Chinese text was made available to badminton lovers; and it is reproduced below, verbatim.
Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei, left, trades shirts with China’s Lin Dan, right, after Lee won their men’s badminton singles semifinal match at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 19, 2016.
Minutes after the medal presentation ceremony, The New Paper asked him what he was going through his mind, and he said: “I just want to rest”.
“I don’t think so”.
Lee has now lost the last three Olympic finals, prolonging Malaysia’s wait for a gold medal at the Olympics.
“I always feel like laughing about it because to me, the whole thing is amusing”.
Two-time world and All England champion Chen said he has followed and been inspired by the two greats since the 2008 Beijing Olympics, when Lin scored the first of two Games finals victories over Lee. “As we become older, both of us have to train really really hard to stay at the level we are now”, said the 32-year-old Chinese. Lin took the first set in the bronze medal match 21-15.
Had Dan won his semi-final clash, China would have bagged gold and silver.
Lee said as world number one he was under pressure to win the title at Rio but Hendrawan felt the Malaysian was coping better with it.
The Rio Olympics might also be the last Games for badminton superstars, Lin Dan and Fu Haifeng of China, Lee Yong Dae of South Korea and Chinese mixed doubles pair Zhao Yunlei and Zhang Nan, who all hinted that they may retire.
Lee tested positive for a forbidden anti-inflammatory drug at the 2014 world championships and many feared it would end his career.
He struggled to keep up an at 8/11 it was the Danes last chance to make improvements and get back in the game.
Malaysians gathered in droves, at home, pubs and at outdoor big screens, to watch the match.
Advertisement
“We still need a gold medal and I hope in 2020 in Tokyo we can achieve that”, said Lee, who added that he had no words for the Malaysian people following his loss.
