Lee Yong-dae
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedy
Early life
Lee started playing badminton at his local elementary school at the age of 8. His youth club is Samsung Electromechanics. He joined the national
badminton team of
South Korea in 2003, at the age of just 15 years old.
[1]Career
2005
Struggling to find the right partner, he played several tournaments, not getting any big results; only two semi-finals in the Asian Satellite. With
Ha Jung-eun as his partner, he won Asian Junior Championship.
2007
In January, Lee and Jung participated in the
Malaysia Open, the first ever
BWF Super Series event. There they got through the first round but had to resign due to injury. However a week later they blew away competition to take the first prize at the
Korea Open. On top of that, Lee also won the mixed doubles with Lee Hyo-jung. Lee and Jung lost to Lee Jae-jin and Hwang Ji-man in the final of the
German Open; in mixed doubles Lee and Lee lost to
Zheng Bo and
Gao Ling of
China in the semi-finals. Zheng and Gao went on to win the tournament.
At the
Swiss Open, Lee and Lee took another title, winning the final in three games. For the rest of the year there were no good results in mixed doubles for Lee, mainly because he didn't participate or played with another partner. In men's doubles, he and Jung were eliminated in a disappointing second round.
Lee participated in the
2007 Sudirman Cup with the
South Korea team. The team lost to
China in the semi-finals with a score of 0-3.
In July, after a period of disappointing results in men's doubles, Lee became runner-up with Jung at the
Thailand Open, losing to Lee Jae-jin and Hwang Ji-man. Not much later, the pair went on to take the silver medal in the
2007 BWF World Championships. They were defeated in the final by
Markis Kido and
Hendra Setiawan of
Indonesia, 19-21, 19-21. In mixed doubles, Lee reached the third round with
Lee Hyo-jung. There they lost to
Gail Emms and
Nathan Robertson of
England in three games. With
Jung Jae-sung, the rest of the year also resulted in quite disappointing achievements, as he failed to pass the quarterfinals in any major events, except in the
French Open. Lee and Jung there lost to the eventual winners,
Cai Yun and
Fu Haifeng of
China.
2008To start 2008, Lee, together with Jung, disappointingly lost to an unseeded pair in the second round of the
Malaysia Open. Mixed doubles went better for Lee and Lee this time, finishing as runners-up. They lost to
He Hanbin and
Yu Yang of
China. In
Korea, things went a bit better in men's doubles, achieving a quarterfinal. Lee and Jung lost to runners-up Luluk Hadiyanto and Alvent Yulianto of Indonesia there, but in mixed doubles Lee and Lee won the title against
Flandy Limpele and
Vita Marissa of
Indonesia.
More than a month later, Lee and Jung came back with a bang to win the
All England Open of 2008, beating
Choong Tan Fook and
Lee Wan Wah in a thrilling semi-final (coming back from a 16-20 deficit in the third game) and Lee Jae-jin and Hwang Ji-man, also from Korea, in the final. In mixed doubles Lee lost in the quarterfinals to eventual winners
Zheng Bo and
Gao Ling. A week later, Lee was victorious with Jung in the
Swiss Open too. In mixed doubles they lost against He Hanbin and Yu Yang, both of who went on to the semi-finals.
At the
Badminton Asia Championships Lee and Jung became winners, beating
Candra Wijaya and
Nova Widianto of Indonesia in the final.
Lee and Jung pair were the only ones to score a point for South Korea against
China in the
Thomas Cup final, which ended in a 3-1 win for China.
Olympics
Not having participated in the two following
Super Series events, supposedly because of their preparations for the
Summer Olympics, Lee was disappointingly knocked out in the first round in
Beijing with Jung. However, Lee and
Lee upset the badminton world and went on to get the gold medal in
mixed doubles, becoming the youngest gold medalists in
Olympic badminton.
2009Lee Yong-dae started a bright year when he and
Jung Jae-sung won the Malaysia Super Series. In Korea Super Series, Lee won the mixed doubles title with
Lee Hyo-jung, while he and Jung only became the finalists. However, as Jung had to join the military service for two months, Lee paired with
Shin Baek-cheol and claimed the German Open title. In the Swiss Open Super Series, Lee Yong-dae and
Lee Hyo-jung reached the mixed doubles final but failed to capture the trophy as they lost to China's
Zheng Bo and
Ma Jin. A month later, they subdued teammates
Yoo Yeon-seong and
Kim Min-jung to clinch the Asian Badminton Championship title.
In the Sudirman Cup on May 10-17, Lee Yong-dae brought
South Korea to the final to meet defending champion
China. Lee always won in both the men's doubles and mixed doubles events. However, in the final, he and Lee Hyo-jung bowed to
Zheng Bo and
Yu Yang, while a few hours later he and
Jung Jae-sung also surrendered to
Cai Yun and
Fu Haifeng.
China then won the cup for the consecutive third time 3-0.
In June, Lee Yong-dae played in the Singapore Open Super Series, but he did not win any title. In Indonesia, a week later, nevertheless, he reached both the finals of men's doubles and mixed doubles event. Again, he and
Lee Hyo-jung were defeated by
Zheng Bo and
Ma Jin, the Chinese pair who beat them in Singapore semi-final. Happily, he took the men's doubles title with
Jung Jae-sung, conquering China's top pair
Cai Yun and
Fu Haifeng.
In August, Lee Yong-dae participated in the BWF World Championships in
Hyderabad,
India. Unfortunately, in the mixed event, he and
Lee Hyo-jung, seeded first, lost to
Thomas Laybourn and
Kamilla Rytter Juhl of
Denmark, who later became the champions. He had a better run with
Jung Jae-sung in the men's doubles, reaching the final. They met Cai and Fu again, and this time, they lost.
Personal life
After winning the Olympic gold medal, Lee becomes so popular that the Korean people recognized him whenever he goes. At first, he felt difficult to move around, but he eventually got used to it and enjoyed the attention.
[2]Achievements
Men Doubles
Year
Tournament
Venue
Round
2009
2009 Yonex BWF World Championships
IndiaRunner-up
2009 Djarum Indonesia Super Series
IndonesiaWinner
2009 German Open
GermanyWinner
2009 Yonex Korea Super Series
KoreaRunner-up
2009 Proton Malaysia Super Series
MalaysiaWinner
2008
2008 Hong Kong Super Series
Hong KongWinner
2008 China Super Series
ChinaWinner
2008 Beijing Olympic Games
ChinaFirst Round
2008 Badminton Asia Championships
MalaysiaWinner
2008 Wilson Swiss Super Series
SwitzerlandWinner
2008 All England
EnglandWinner
2007
Thailand Grand Prix Gold
ThailandRunner-Up
Germany Grand Prix
GermanyRunner-Up
Yonex Korea Open Super Series
Seoul,
KoreaWinner
2006
2006 Thailand Open
ThailandWinner
2006 Indonesia Open
Jakarta,
IndonesiaSemi-Finalist
2006 Germany Open
GermanyWinner
2005
2005 Mongolian Asian Satelite
MongoliaWinner
2005 Swiss Open
SwitzerlandQuarter-Finalist
2005 Germany Open
GermanyQuarter-finalist
Mixed Doubles
Year
Tournament
Venue
Round
2009
2009 Taiwan Open Grand Prix Gold
TaiwanFirst Round
2009 Yonex BWF World Championships
IndiaSemi-finalist
2009 Happy Suwon Asian Badminton Championship
KoreaWinner
2009 German Open Grand Prix Gold
GermanySemi-finalist
2009 Yonex Korea Super Series
KoreaWinner
2009 Proton Malaysia Super Series
MalaysiaRunner-Up
2008
2008 Hong Kong Super Series
Hong KongRunner-Up
2008 China Super Series
ChinaWinner
2008 Beijing Olympic Games
ChinaWinner
2008 Badminton Asia Championship
MalaysiaQuarter-finalist
2008 Wilson Swiss Super Series
SwitzerlandSemi-finalist
2008 Yonex All England Super Series
EnglandQuarter-finalist
2008 German Open
GermanyWinner
2008 Korea Super Series
KoreaWinner
2008 Malaysia Super Series
MalaysiaRunner-Up
2007
2007 Wilson Swiss Super Series
SwitzerlandWinner
2007 Yonex All England Super Series
EnglandQuarter-finalist
2007 German Open
GermanySemi-finalist
2006
2006 Badminton World Championships
SpainSecond Round
2006 Korea Open
KoreaQuarter-finalist
2006 Thailand Open
ThailandWinner
2006 Macau Open Championship
MacauQuarter-finalist
2006 Chinese Taipei Open
TaiwanSemi-finalist
2005
2005 Indonesia Open
IndonesiaQuarter-finalist
2005 Noonnoppi Korea Open
KoreaQuarter-finalist
2004
2004 French Open International
FranceSemi-finalist
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Lin Dan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lin Dan
Personal information
Nickname(s)
Super Dan
[1]Date of birth
October 14, 1983 (1983-10-14) (age 25)
Place of birth
Longyan,
Fujian,
ChinaHeight
1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight
72 kg (160 lb; 11.3 st)
Men Singles
Country
ChinaHandedness
Left
Highest Ranking
1 (February 26, 2004
[2])
Current Ranking
2 (October 8, 2009)
BWF ProfileMedal record
Competitor for
ChinaMen's
badmintonOlympic GamesGold
2008 BeijingMen's SinglesWorld ChampionshipsGold
2009 HyderabadMen's SinglesGold
2007 Kuala LumpurMen's SinglesGold
2006 MadridMen's SinglesSilver
2005 AnaheimMen's SinglesLin Dan (
simplified Chinese: 林丹;
traditional Chinese: 林丹;
pinyin: Lín Dān; born October 14, 1983 in
Longyan,
Fujian) is a dominant Chinese
badminton player of
Hakka ancestry. He has been nicknamed "Super Dan" (超级丹) by his fans. Lin won the men's singles gold medal at the
2008 Summer Olympics. He is the only player in badminton history to have won three singles world championship titles having done so consecutively in 2006, 2007, and 2009.
[3]Contents[
hide]
1 Career1.1 20041.2 20051.3 20061.4 20071.5 20081.6 20092 Personal life3 Style and attributes4 Titles5 References6 External linksCareer
Lin became one of the dominant players of men's singles, winning nine top tier international championships between 2002 and 2004. In a surprise loss, he was eliminated as the no.1 seed in the first round of the
badminton men's singles in the
2004 Summer Olympics in
Athens. However, he has continued his dominance in international tournaments and has been continuously ranked number one in the world since early 2004, except for a very brief period of time in 2006 when
Lee Chong Wei of
Malaysia overtook him.
Among the tournaments Lin Dan have won are the
All-England Open (2004, 2006, 2007 and 2009), the
BWF World Championships (
2006,
2007 and
2009), and the
Olympic Games (
2008). He has helped
China win three consecutive
Thomas Cup (men's world team) championships in
2004,
2006, and
2008 and has also been a major contributor to Chinese teams which won the
Sudirman Cup (combined men's and women's team championship) in 2005, 2007 and 2009.
2004
By the beginning of 2004, Lin Dan was already world number one at age 20. He started off the year by winning his first
All England title by beating
Peter Gade of Denmark. He continued to shine as he won the
Swiss Open and the
Denmark Open by defeating his senior teammate and former world number one
Xia Xuanze. He also went on to take the
German Open and the
China Open, beating his compatriot and good friend
Bao Chunlai. In May, Lin Dan also played a major role in bringing the
Thomas Cup back to China after a long domination by
Indonesia.
2005
In 2005, Lin Dan won his "warm-up" tournament for the All England, the German Open, after beating
Malaysia's
Muhammad Hafiz Hashim. However he lost his All England title to compatriot
Chen Hong. In May 2005, Lin Dan and his compatriots brought back the
Sudirman Cup to China, where in 2003 they had lost to South Korea. In August, Lin Dan reached his first
World Championship final in
Anaheim, USA, but lost to the talented Indonesian,
Taufik Hidayat. Even so, he managed to claim more titles at the
China Masters and the
Hong Kong Open.
2006
Lin Dan started 2006 by recapturing the
All England championship by overcoming
Lee Hyun-il of South Korea. He carried on his reign as the world number one when he swept the
Chinese Taipei Open, the
Macau Open, Hong Kong Open and
Japan Open. In September 2006, Lin Dan won his first
World Championship by beating fellow compatriot
Bao Chunlai in a three game thriller 18–21, 21–17, 21–12. Subsequently, Lin Dan regained his world number one status which had been briefly occupied by
Lee Chong Wei.
Earlier in May, Lin Dan and his teammates extended China's supremacy in the Thomas Cup event in Tokyo, Japan. Lin Dan beat
Peter Gade in the first mens singles match in straight sets 21–17, 21–19 as China shut out Denmark 3–0 in the final.
2007
Lin Dan entered 2007 with a loss at the
Malaysia Open, losing to South Korea's
Park Sung-hwan in the round of 16. The losing streak did not last long as a week later he captured the
Korea Openafter defeating his fellow national player
Chen Jin. He went on to win the German Open and then the
All England championships again, crushing compatriot
Chen Yu 21–13, 21–12. In June, Lin Dan was part of Team China in the
Sudirman Cup, which was held in
Glasgow, Scotland. The Chinese team brought home the cup after beating
Indonesia 3–0 in the final. Later in the season Lin Dan ousted
Wong Choong Hann of
Malaysia and became the China's Master champion for 2007. In August, Lin Dan extended his reign as the
world champion as he beat
Indonesia's
Sony Dwi Kuncoro 21–11, 22–20. Lin Dan would become the first man since Yang Yang to win back to back world championships.
2008As every athlete looked forward to the
2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Lin Dan, who was certainly qualified to play, did not begin the year on a strong note: he failed to win either the Malaysian Open or the Korean Open (he was a finalist in the latter). He also lost his All England title to
Chen Jin, but then went on to win the Swiss Open.
At the
2008 Thomas Cup, which was held in
Jakarta, Lin Dan won every match he played except in the semi-finals where he lost to
Malaysia's
Lee Chong Wei. Even with his loss, his team advanced to the finals. In the finals, Lin Dan earned a point for China by returning from a first-set loss and overcame
Park Sung-Hwan of South Korea 10–21, 21–18, 21–8. China beat
South Korea 3–1 and brought the cup back for the third consecutive time.
Lin Dan did not play in Singapore Open or the Indonesia Open, two
Super Series tournaments, because of his intensive training for the Olympic Games. He did, however, play in the Thailand Open Grand Prix as a precursor to the Olympic Games. There, he defeated local favorite
Boonsak Ponsana to take the title.
In the Olympic Games, Lin Dan, who was undoubtedly the local hero and heavy favourite, began his gold medal hunt by subduing Hong Kong's
Ng Wei 21–16, 21–13 in the round of 32. Next he saw off
Park Sung-Hwan 21–11, 21–8, and in the quarter finals, Lin Dan ended veteran
Peter Gade's dream of ever winning an Olympic medal as he beat Gade in straight sets. He then faced teammate
Chen Jin in the semi-finals and beat him handily in two sets. This vaulted him into the finals where he was set to meet
Lee Chong Wei. The dream match had finally come as the World No. 1 and 2 were set to battle it out for badminton's most prestigious title. It was supposed to be a tough match for both players, but Lin Dan grabbed the gold as he overwhelmed the Malaysian in a one-sided two-setter 21–12, 21–8. Lin Dan thus became the first men's singles player ever to win the All England title, two world championship titles, and the Olympic gold medal.
After a hiatus of almost four months, Lin Dan came back in November from a post-Olympic break and played in the China Open Super Series. He again met
Lee Chong Wei in the finals and won by the scores of 21–18, 21–9 with the second set almost identical to their match in the Beijing Games. In late November he faced
Chen Jin in the finals of the
Hong Kong Super Series but lost 9–21, 21–9, 17–21.
Even though Lin Dan only competed in 5 Super Series events that year, he had enough points to qualify for the
BWF Super Series Masters Finals being held in
Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah,
Malaysia. .
[4] However, Lin Dan did not participate in the tournament because the Chinese team did not send any representatives.
2009
Lin Dan won the 2009 All-England men's singles, beating Lee Chong Wei 21–19, 21–12. The first set was a thriller and Lin Dan's unforced errors gave the World No. 1 Lee a lead, although "Super Dan" came back in style to take the set and then cruised in the second to win the match. A mere week later, however, he was beaten by Lee in the final of the Omega European Masters (Swiss Open in Basel) 21–16, 21–16.
In May, Lin Dan was part of Team China in the
Sudirman Cup, which was held in
Guangzhou, China. He played for China team in every match and won all of them, including the semi-finals against Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei with, ironically, the exact same score-line of 21/16 – 21/16 when Lee Chong Wei beat Lin Dan in the Swiss Open final. This was also the first time Lin Dan beat Lee Chong Wei in a team event. The Chinese team proved too strong for other teams by sweeping the competition at home, with all their players undefeated, with 21 matches won and none lost.
In August, Lin became the first player to win three straight World Championship, when he beat compatriot
Chen Jin 21–18, 21–16 in 45 minutes at the final of
2009 World Championships in
Hyderabad,
India.
[5][
edit] Personal life
Lin is one of the more popular and controversial badminton players active today, due to his flamboyant personality both on and off the court. He is known as a temperamental player, occasionally disrupting matches to protest line calls. He is demonstrative in his celebrations, and has a habit of "playing to the crowd" (after winning the 2008 olympics in Beijing, he threw his shoes and racket into the crowd). He currently has a romantic relationship with fellow Chinese badminton player
Xie Xingfang[6]. Lin belongs to the sports troop of the
People's Liberation Army[7] and has the military rank of lieutenant colonel.
[
edit] Style and attributes
Lin Dan is a left-handed player whose most defining characteristic is his ability to attack with fast smashes at steep angles. He combines quick movements around the court with the ability to maintain long aggressive rallies to win the majority of his matches. He relies on diving to retrieve his opponents attacking shots with an exceptionally fast recovery. His well built physique helps him to produce powerful straight and cross court jump smashes, and his fast penetrating footwork makes him one of the toughest active badminton players in the open circuit. At one time he was criticized for a lack of precision or refinement, especially when compared to competitors such as Taufik Hidayat and Peter Gade. However, Lin now occasionally uses deceiving wrist movements and employs a wider variety of shots, developing into a more complete player.
[
edit] Titles
Rank
Event
Date
Venue
Olympics1
Singles
17 August 2008
Beijing, China
World Championships1
Singles
2009
Hyderabad, India
1
Singles
2007
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
1
Singles
2006
Madrid, Spain
2
Singles
2005
Anaheim, California, USA
Asian Games1
Team
2006
Doha, Qatar
2
Singles
2006
Doha, Qatar
3
Team
2002
Busan, Korea
Thomas Cup1
Team
2008
Indonesia
1
Team
2006
Japan
1
Team
2004
Jakarta, INA
2
Team
2002
Guangzhou, CHN
Sudirman Cup1
Team
2005
Beijing, CHN
1
Team
2007
Glascow, Scotland
1
Team
2009
Guangzhou, CHN
World Cup1
Singles
2005
Yiyang, CHN
1
Singles
2006
Yiyang, CHN
World Tournaments
1
Singles
2009
Li Ning China Masters Super Series
1
Singles
2009
Yonex All England Open Super Series
1
Singles
2008
Li Ning China Open Super Series
1
Singles
2008
Thailand Grand Prix Gold
1
Singles
2008
Wilson Swiss Open Super Series
1
Singles
2007
Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open Super Series
1
Singles
2007
Denmark Open Super Series
1
Singles
2007
China Masters Super Series
1
Singles
2007
Yonex All England Open Super Series
1
Singles
2007
Yonex German Open
1
Singles
2007
Yonex Korea Open Super Series
1
Singles
2006
Yonex Japan Open
1
Singles
2006
Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open
1
Singles
2006
Macau Open
1
Singles
2006
Chinese Taipei Open
1
Singles
2006
Yonex All England Open
1
Singles
2005
Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open
1
Singles
2005
China Masters
1
Singles
2005
Yonex Japan Open
1
Singles
2005
German Open
1
Singles
2004
China Open
1
Singles
2004
German Open
1
Singles
2004
Realkredit Denmark Open
1
Singles
2004
Yonex All England Open
1
Singles
2004
Swiss Open
1
Singles
2003
China Open
1
Singles
2003
Hong Kong Open
1
Singles
2003
Realkredit Denmark Open
1
Singles
2002
Noonnoppi Korea Open
2
Singles
2009
Wilson Swiss Open Super Series
2
Singles
2008
Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open Super Series
2
Singles
2008
Yonex All England Super Series
2
Singles
2008
Yonex Korea Super Series
2
Singles
2006
Proton Eon Malaysia Open
2
Singles
2005
Proton Eon Malaysia Open
2
Singles
2005
Yonex All England Open
2
Singles
2003
German Open
2
Singles
2002
Yonex Japan Open
3
Singles
2006
China Open
3
Singles
2006
German Open
3
Singles
2006
China Masters
3
Singles
2005
Aviva Singapore Open
3
Singles
2004
Djarum Indonesia Open
3
Singles
2004
Yonex Japan Open
3
Singles
2002
All England Open
[
edit] References
^ Ramzy, Austin,
100 Olympic Athletes To Watch,
Time,
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1819129_1819134_1825934,00.html, retrieved 2008-08-11
^ IBF Historical Ranking - MENS SINGLES^ http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5iBp5mncI42R4crQcytni_kCHMmxA^ http://www.internationalbadminton.org/news1.asp?pageid={C53ECDFA-B5A4-4B39-AC22-39CCC6E0660F}, Internationbadminton.org, 1 December 2008
^ "
Lin beats Chen in all-Chinese final". ESPN. 2009-08-17 6.
http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=4402434. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
^ Yonex All England - Golden couple for a 10th time, BadZine.com, 12 March 2007
^ Chinese stars a perfect couple in badminton, NewJersey.com, 17 August 2008
[
edit] External links
(Chinese)
Lin Dan's Blog(Chinese)
The Official LinDan Website(Chinese)
The Official China Badminton Website
