Taiwanese badminton stars Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin yesterday advanced to the gold medal match of the men’s doubles, while Taiwanese top seed Tai Tzu-ying got off to a rough start in a nail-biting women’s singles quarter-final against Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon, but rallied with a series of flash backhand smashes.
Lee and Wang beat Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan 21-11, 21-10 in their men’s doubles semi-final to set up a shot at the gold medal against China’s Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen, who had a 24-22, 21-13 win over Malaysia’s Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik.
Tai rallied from a game down to defeat Intanon 14-21, 21-18, 21-18.
Photo: AFP
At one point, the Taiwanese hit two stunning backhands in quick succession while on the floor, prompting disbelieving gasps and cheers from the scant audience at Musashino Forest Sport Plaza.
Tai is to face Rio de Janeiro Games silver medalist P.V. Sindhu in the semi-finals after the Indian used her height advantage to smash her way to a 21-13, 22-20 victory over Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi.
Earlier, Chinese world No. 2 Chen Yufei prevailed 21-18, 21-19 against South Korea’s An Se-young.
“Being patient is the only way you can win in the game,” Chen said.
Chen next plays her teammate He Bingjiao, who rallied to beat Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara 13-21, 21-13, 21-14.
“It doesn’t matter now who wins the game tomorrow as long as we do our best,” Chen said.
China, who have yet to lose a single badminton match to another nation at the Games, won gold and silver in the mixed doubles after Wang Yilyu and Huang Dongping beat favorites Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong 21-17, 17-21, 21-19.
For over an hour, the four players who regularly train with one another put on a show of sharp drop-shots, solid smashes and lengthy rallies.
After world No. 3 Wang and Huang pulled off a rare win over their top-ranked compatriots, both pairs were euphoric up on the podium and the new Olympic champions playfully bit into their gold medals.
“I feel blank,” said Wang, who was tackled onto the court with a hug by his much smaller teammate when they won. “It was easier because it was our teammates — we didn’t have as much of a psychological burden.”
Japan bagged their first-ever Olympic mixed doubles bronze medal when Yuta Watanabe and Arisa Higashino, who have played together for a decade, defeated Hong Kong’s Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet 21-17, 23-21 in a tight match.
Exhausted, the Japanese both said there were times they wanted to throw in the towel.
Watanabe said he was honored to be the first Japanese man to win an Olympic medal in badminton.
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was
Aaliyah Edwards on Monday pulled off the stunner of the opening round of the Unrivaled one-on-one tournament, beating top-seeded Breanna Stewart 12-0. The tournament to be played over three days featured 23 of the WNBA’s 36 players. A few had other commitments and a couple others were out with injuries. Stewart got the ball first against Edwards and missed a contested layup. Edwards then hit a three-pointer from the corner and a jumper from the elbow to go up 5-0. The player who scores keeps the basketball. Edwards hit two layups and a three-pointer to seal the win. Stewart, a two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player,
SPEEDSKATER: Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s run at the Asian Winter Games without a medal since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990 Speedskater Chen Ying-chu yesterday made history as the first athlete representing Taiwan to secure a medal at the Asian Winter Games. Competing at the HIC Speedskating Oval in Harbin, China, Chen clocked 10.510 seconds in the women’s 100m event, finishing third behind South Koreans Lee Na-hyum and Kim Min-sun, who posted times of 10.501 and 10.505 seconds respectively. Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s drought at the Asian Winter Games since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990. This year’s Games mark Chen’s debut at the event. Previously excelling in roller speedskating, she won six medals at world championships before transitioning
The 40-year-old LeBron James on Thursday became the oldest player to score 40 points in an NBA game, putting up a season-high 42 in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. James passed the record held by Michael Jordan, his idol and the only other NBA player to score 40 after his 40th birthday. “I’m old, that’s my take,” James said when asked about his latest achievement. “I need a glass of wine and some sleep, that’s what I think.” Jordan did it for the Washington Wizards just three days after turning 40 in February 2003. James is 38