Chinese shuttler Chen Yufei wins Olympic women's singles gold

Tokyo, August 2

China’s top seed Chen Yufei defeated Chinese Taipei’s world No. 1 Tai Tzu-ying 2-1 in the badminton women’s singles final at the Tokyo Olympics here.

Scores seesawed from the onset before Chen led from a 17-17 tie to 21-18. Chen raced to an 11-8 lead in the second game, but Tai recovered from 12-14 down to win 21-19. In the decider, Chen dominated to clinch a 21-18 victory.

Chen, 23, who is a two-time bronze medallist at the World Championships, thus took her first Olympic gold in her competition debut, reports Xinhua.

“It was unbelievable and I feel so happy,” Chen said. “My head went blank when I scored the last point.” “Even when I lost the second game, I told myself not to give up and hold on to my belief,” Chen said.

Tai said that she made many mistakes in the first half of the decider, adding that it was hard for her to come back. “I think I played pretty well today, but she [Chen] just played better.” Tai said she will take a break after the end of this year before deciding where to go next.

Earlier, India’s No.7 Pusarla Venkata Sindhu beat Chen’s teammate He Bingjiao 21-13, 21-15 to bag the bronze. — IANS