Lin Dan to open Olympic campaign against Evans http://www.thehindu.com/sport/other-sports/article3674410.ece LONDON, July 23, 2012 AP Excerpt: Lin Dan of China will open the defence of his Olympic badminton title against unheralded Scott Evans of Ireland. Top-seeded Lee Chong Wei, who lost to Lin in the Beijing Olympic final, drew Ville Lang of Finland. Third-seeded Chen Long will meet Boonsak Ponsana of Thailand, who won the Singapore Open last month, and Chinese teammate Chen Jin, who reached the world’s top four in April to qualify for London, was placed in Lin’s half of the draw on Monday.
Looks like a pretty good draw, i think the only real dangerous player is Lee Hyun Il and maybe Jan O?
I'm not sure if this has been posted anywhere here, but here is another superb piece of writing by Dev Sukumar. For your reading pleasure, then... Lin Dan: No peaks to conquer Dev Sukumar Sportskeeda, Jul 19, 2012 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/07/19/lin-dan-no-peaks-to-conquer/?ref=more-from-sport Excerpts: Lin Dan will head into the London Olympics as favourite to win a gold medal that will be an addition to a staggering collection of titles, but more than the number, it is the sheer authority with which he has dominated badminton that he qualifies to be among the greatest of all time. The inevitable question arises: how does he compare across eras? ...What makes Lin so devastating is his ability on all counts. Lin Dan soaring in the air is one of the most majestic sights in sport. The lift-off is followed by a moment’s hesitation as he decides which direction he should choose, and then the shuttle homes in on the target. His wristy snap at the moment of contact, and the steepness of the angle, make it impossible for the opponent to either predict or defend his smash accurately. He is able to unleash smashes off-position, and able to defend just as well — covering up with dives when he fails to make the distance. At the net he is as good as anyone in the world. ...“Bao actually hits the shuttle harder than Lin Dan, but I could defend it,” he (Dicky Palyama) said. “But with Lin, it’s not that you cannot take the smash, it’s that you cannot control it. I spent all evening looking at his videos but couldn’t spot one weakness.” ...This era has been lucky for badminton fans, for it produced the genius of Taufik Hidayat at the same time as Lin. Their styles are different — Taufik is lyrical; Lin is physical, but he brings a physical beauty to badminton. “Taufik does just about enough to win the game,” says Jonassen. “Lin Dan crushes you from the start.” Lin has just a handful of losses in major events. Unlike Roger Federer, who hasn’t been able to shake off the Nadal question, Lin Dan has no Nadal. Asked what he thought of the greats of his time, like Michael Schumacher, Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong, Lin said: “I have no illusions I’m there with them. They’re all great.” That is polite talk, for Lin Dan sits at the pinnacle of his game, and he has no equal.
Better than doing nothing at all. I have to thank him for having the competency to cook up this idea.
basically his role is to speak to the media, if u see LCW matches... he always accompany Seu Bock to advise LCW but kept quite...
The training for smashes in china involving speed, power, steepness, endurance and stamina. Some say the 2nd guy to walk into the camera court is LD. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=I1_qtpK5gDU
coming on at 0:23s, he sure has incredible footwork and handspeed... and the hang time.. all the little actions are very much like LD
LD Warming up at the olympics View attachment 127095 question is, what new shoes is he wearing? And where is the n90II he was suppose to be using? View attachment 127096
He will be watching TH play closely this Saturday since he wont play till Monday. Get ready to do some analysis work.
Did anybody also realise that currently China stands at the top of the World Championship table with 53 gold medals? And Lin Dan actually won China's 50th gold medal? Surprisingly a lot of people didnt notice that significant number. Heard from a news somewhere LYB is planning/scheming to have his son Li Gen to capture that 100th Gold Medal lol!!!!