Thaindian News

London, Aug 4 (IANS) After four years, world’s top badminton players Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei are to meet again in the Olympic Games for the gold in men’s singles.

China’s badminton star Lin Dan beat his rival, Lee Hyun II from South Korea, 21-12, 21-10, while Malaysian Lee Chong Wei prevented an all-Chinese final by beating Chen Long 21-13, 21-14 Friday, reported Xinhua.

The competition was not really intense, as Lin dominated the court all the time, changing speed suddenly and beating the No.7 seed Lee comfortably.

“I threw myself into the competition actively, so as not to repeat the hard battle yesterday (Friday),” he said.

In the other semifinal, the Chinese No.3 seed seemed nervous and made several mistakes, whereas the most experienced Lee was patient.

Looking into the final, Lee called Lin Dan his “old foe”. He was overpowered by the Chinese four years ago in the Beijing Olympics, and lost to him again at the World Championships last year in the Wembley Arena, where the final is to be played.

“The final will be a replay of the World Championship final,” he said.

Lin was emotional talking about his arch-rival Lee. “We are getting older but could meet again in the Olympic final, which is amazing,” he said. “I know he wants to win. I don’t want to think about the result, but I will do my best.”

If Lin wins, he will become the first men’s single player to defend his title successfully at the Olympic badminton events.

But he didn’t care. “The most important thing is whether I tried.”