The Hindu : Sport : Lin Dan brooks no challenge

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Monday, Aug 18, 2008
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Lin Dan brooks no challenge

BEIJING: Lin Dan of China won the gold medal in men’s singles at the Olympic badminton tournament on Sunday, defeating Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia 21-12, 21-8.

The top-seeded Lin was in control from the outset and triumphed over the second-seeded Lee to give China its third gold medal in badminton.

Lin took an 11-1 lead in the second game with Lee’s only point coming on an unforced error by Lin.

Lee was bidding for Malaysia’s first gold medal in the Olympics but was no match for the top-ranked Lin, who won the match with a smash down the line that Lee returned into the net.

Zhang Ning won women’s singles and Du Jing and Yu Yang won gold in women’s doubles.

China also won three out of five gold medals at the 2004 Athens Games.

S. Korean pair triumphs

Meanwhile, South Korea’s Lee Hyojung and Lee Yongdae clinched gold in the mixed doubles, upsetting the Indonesian World champions Liliyana Natsir and Nova Widianto.

The South Koreans, unseeded here and ranked 10 in the world, outgunned the top seeds, winning 21-11, 21-17.

Lee Hyojung, 27, takes home one gold and one silver in this tournament after losing to China’s champions in the women’s doubles.

The South Koreans outclassed the top seeds in the first game, winning easily with a mixture of speed and intelligent net play. Brimming with confidence, the South Koreans took a 4-0 lead in the second before the Indonesians stared to fire up. But with Lee Hyojung mostly dictating from the net and her partner smashing from the baseline, the pair rocketed ahead, while the Indonesians showed a shadow of the form that saw them down China’s fourth seeds in the semifinals.

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