Taufik set to meet Shon in final
Taufik set to meet Shon in final
Agencies Athens
Indonesia won a second medal courtesy of Flandy Limpele and Eng Hian while Taufik Hidayat ensured the quest for a badminton gold was still alive after he booked a place in the men's singles final on Friday.
Flandy and Eng Hian, the eighth seeds, took the bronze medal in the Olympic men's doubles badminton after defeating Danish fifth seeds Jens Eriksen and Marti Lundgaard 15-13, 15-7 in 53 minutes.
Top seeds Kim Dong-moon and Ha Tae-kwon, who spoilt the Indonesian pair's gold bid on Wednesday, cruised through to win the gold medal with a 15-11, 15-4 victory over unseeded Lee Dong- soo and Yoo Yong-sung in the all-Korean final.
Meanwhile, unseeded Taufik, a quarterfinalist in Sydney four years ago, beat Thailand's Ponsana Boonsak 15-9, 15-2, but Indonesia's hopes for an all-Indonesia final were shattered after Sony Dwi Kuncoro was beaten by Shon Seung-mo of South Korea later in the day.
Shon, who is partially sighted after being struck in the right eye by a shuttlecock when he was 15, overcame eighth seed Sony 15-6, 9-15, 15-9.
Sony, twice Asian champion, will play in Saturday's bronze medal match against Ponsana.
Taufik, who knocked out Malaysian third seed Wong Choon-Han and Danish sixth seed Peter Gade on his way to the last four, has a long history of tantrums, but he kept his temper under control to march into Saturday's final against Shon.
"Everyone has been saying to me that I am not so emotional on court in this tournament," said the charismatic 23-year-old, who wears a diamond stud in his left ear.
"I can't explain it, but I feel much more relaxed, more than I have ever done, much more than in Sydney."
Asked what was the key to defeating Ponsana, the first Thai to reach the semifinals of the men's singles at the Olympics, the Asian champion said: "My heart and my head."
Taufik, who two years ago came very close to playing for Singapore after falling out with the Indonesian badminton association, said he thought Ponsana performed way below his best.
"Ponsana is a difficult opponent, but today he made many mistakes," he said.
Ponsana, who knocked out South Korean fifth seed Lee Hyun-iI in the round of 16, led 6-5 in the opening game.
But the 22-year-old unseeded Thai was unable to maintain his solid start and a string of unforced errors allowed Taufik to take control of the match.
The Indonesian battered Ponsana with a series of leaping cross-court smashes and conceded just three more points on his way to wrapping up the first game.
Taufik romped the second game with a near flawless display to keep alive his bid of emulating compatriot Alan Budi Kusuma, who took gold in the men's singles in Barcelona 12 years ago.
Shon, 24, was lost for words after becoming ther first Korean to reach the final of the men's singles at the Olympics.
"I don't know what to say," he said. "I'm full of emotion, I've made history."
China was assured of its third Olympic gold medal in badminton as two of the country's teams reached the final of the women's doubles.
Number one seeds Zhang Jiewen and Yang Wei defeated South Korean third seeds Ra Kyung-min and Lee Kyung-won 15-6, 15-4 , while number two seeds Huang Sui and Gao Ling, the reigning world champions, beat compatriots Zhao Tingting and Wei Yili 15-10, 17- 14.