Source: Visual China Group/VCG
[Saba Sports News] Over the past 20 years, in the six Olympic Games since the 2000 Olympics, only Lin Dan has managed to win the gold medal as the top seed in the men’s singles event in Olympic badminton. Lin Dan achieved this feat at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when he defeated Malaysian star Lee Chong Wei with a score of 2-0, claiming his first Olympic gold medal. Other top-seeded players such as Taufik Hidayat in the 2000 Olympics, Lin Dan himself in 2004, Lee Chong Wei in 2012 and 2016, and Kento Momota in 2020, all failed to secure the championship as they had hoped. However, in women’s singles badminton, the top seed in the Olympics has a 50% chance of winning. Gong Zhichao, Carolina Marin Martin in 2016, Chen Yufei in 2020, and others managed to clinch the gold medal. This year, Shi Yu Qi and An Se-young compete as the top seeds in the men’s and women’s singles events, respectively. Can they successfully claim the gold medal?