Hoyer Larsen gives final touch to Indonesian woes
Hoyer Larsen gives final touch to Indonesian woes
BIRMINGHAM, England (Reuter): Poul-Erik Hoyer Larsen completed a miserable All-England championships for the Indonesian favorites.
The 29-year-old Dane capped the eclipse of the previously all- conquering Indonesians with a 17-16 15-6 triumph over twice champion and world number one Hariyanto Arbi to win the men's title on Saturday.
This followed Friday's semifinal defeat of Indonesia's world, Olympic and defending women's champion Susi Susanti by Chinese- born Lim Xiao Qing of Sweden.
Lim went on to win the title with an 11-9 10-12 11-3 victory over Denmark's Camilla Martin on Saturday to earn her adopted country a first women's All-England success since Eva Twedberg in 1971.
Now Indonesia's world titles held by Joko Suprianto and Susi will come under attack in May at the world championships in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Indonesia also hold the Olympic singles titles and the Thomas and Uber Cup men's and women's team titles. With the top six world-ranked men and Susi supreme among the women, further success in Birmingham was considered almost a foregone conclusion.
Frost
Hoyer-Larsen -- beaten 15-0 15-6 the last time he met Hariyanto -- completed three wins over Indonesians on his way to victory and was in no doubt about where the credit for his success rested.
Denmark's singles team began working with four-times champion Morten Frost this year and it paid huge dividends.
"Morten has changed the way we train," he said. "He knew how to win big tournaments and when he told us things he wanted us to use, we listened because of our respect for his past in the game."
Hoyer-Larsen learned everything he needed to know about Arbi's game as he dropped the first seven points of the match.
"I knew where he smashed and that if I were able to catch his smash, I had a chance," he said. He was soon level at 7-7 and it stayed close to 14-all.
Hariyanto led 16-14, then Hoyer-Larsen swept three points for the game. After that the Dane slowly turned the screw.
"This is great for us because it shows us we can compete with the Indonesians," he said. "This is one of the most prestigious events and this is the greatest moment of my life.
"It was a blitz at the start but in the second game I was in control."
Hariyanto sportingly paid tribute to the victor. "I didn't think he could respond to my play as well as he did. Whatever I tried, he could return," he said.
Susi was every bit as gracious after losing to Lim and the Indonesians earned much admiration in defeat.
In the final against Martin, Lim was a game and 10-2 up, only to be forced into a third game by the gritty 20-year-old Dane.
Lim, however, put that setback out of her mind. "It was not easy to do that but I did it," she said.
Lim left China after the Tiananmen Square riots in 1989 to take up an offer to play for a Swedish club in Malmo.
Swedish team manager Lars Sologub said the Chinese were upset to lose her. "They even kept her out of the Barcelona Olympics in 1992 because she had not lived in her new country for three years," he said.
Final results
Men's singles final: Poul-Erik Hoyer Larsen (Den) bt Hariyanto Arbi (Ina) 17-16, 15-6.
Women's singles final: Qing Lim (Swe) bt Camilla Martin (Den) 11-9, 10-12, 11-3.
Men's doubles final Rexy Mainaky and Ricky Subagya (Ina) bt Antonius and Deny Kantono (Ina) 15-12, 18-15, 15-8.
Women's doubles final Gil Young and Jang Hye-ock (Kor) bt Elisa and Rosiana Zelin (Ina) 15-6, 15-3.
Mixed doubles final Thomas Lund and Marlene Thomsen (Den) bt Jon Holst-Christensen and Rikke Olsen (Den) 15-7, 15-7