KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s men’s singles ace Lee Zii Jia is inspired to give his best at the Paris Olympics, following the stellar performances of his compatriots in the group stages.
The 26-year-old’s ambition was conveyed to the local press in Paris by the Malaysian Chef de Mission (CDM) to the Games, Datuk Hamidin Amin, on Monday.
According to Hamidin, Zii Jia, who won his first Group G match on Sunday against Sri Lanka’s Viren Nettasinghe, is all fired up after watching the rest of the Malaysian shuttlers, especially mixed doubles duo Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei, who secured their place in the quarter-finals as Group D winners.
Earlier, Olympic debutants Tang Jie and Ee Wei stunned a packed Porte de La Chapelle Arena when they upset China’s world number two Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Ping 17-21, 21-15, 21-16, making it three wins in three group matches.
Malaysia’s number one men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik have also secured their place in the last eight after two wins in Group A, while women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah showed true grit when they clawed back from a game down to upset former world champions Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara of Japan in their second Group A match on Sunday.
“I met Zii Jia earlier in the Games Village, and he is raring to go because he is inspired by the rest of the Malaysian shuttlers.
“He told me that when he sees the rest of them win, he also steps on the court with a lot of confidence.
“I see the performance of the Malaysian badminton team at this Olympics as a feel-good factor. They are inspiring one another.
“Hopefully, it will also inspire the rest of the national contingent, especially in the remaining sports like archery (individual), diving, golf, cycling, and weightlifting,” Hamidin said.
Zii Jia will play Spain’s Pablo Abian in his final group match on Wednesday. For the singles event, only the top players from each group will advance to the last 16 stage.
As for Pearly and Thinaah, they will face Indonesia’s Apriyani Rahayu and Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti in the final group match tomorrow.
To qualify for the knockout stage, they have no choice but to win the tie and hope for China’s Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan to defeat Matsumoto and Nagahara in their last match. – July 29, 2024