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Olympic Badminton Recaps: 30 July (Day 11)

Women's Doubles Bronze Medal Playoff

QIN and TANG Win First Badminton Medal of 1996 Olympic Games

QIN Yiyuan and TANG Yongshu of the People's Republic of China entered the Olympic badminton women's doubles tournament seeded third, and that's exactly where they finished. QIN and TANG defeated fourth-seeded Helene KIRKEGAARD and Rikke OLSEN of Denmark, 7-15, 15-4, 15-8, to win the first badminton medal of the 1996 Olympic Games. QIN and TANG will not actually receive their bronze medals until Wednesday morning after the gold and silver medalists have been decided.

Despite several early net errors from both teams, QIN and TANG took the early lead in the first game, but KIRKEGAARD and OLSEN rallied, scoring 11 unanswered points to lead 12-3, a deficit from which the Chinese could not recover.

In the second game, KIRKEGAARD and OLSEN won the first point, but QIN and TANG soon built a 5-1 lead which they stretched into 9-3 and then 13-4 before putting the game away.

The third game was somewhat closer, with the teams exchanging leads twice. The Chinese pair won the first two points. KIRKEGAARD and OLSEN then gained the lead, which they built to 6-3 before QIN and TANG scored seven straight points to gain control of the game, and the match.

Medalists: Bronze: QIN Yiyuan/TANG Yongshu (CHN)

"We defended too much and weren't offensive enough," said QIN and TANG, finishing each other's thoughts and sentences. "The other team was very aggressive, but on the crucial points, we used our experience."


Men's Doubles Bronze Medal Playoff

ANTONIUS and KANTONO Win Bronze

Indonesia won its first badminton medal of the 1996 Olympic Games when ANTONIUS and Denny KANTONO defeated Malaysia's SOO Beng Kiang and TAN Kim Her, 15-4, 12-15, 15-8, to win the men's doubles bronze medal. With the medal, Indonesia keeps pace with China in the Olympic badminton medal race, both with six medals since badminton became an Olympic sport in 1992.

In the first game, ANTONIUS and KANTONO went up 4-0 on their first serve and never relinquished the lead. The Indonesian pair was up 7-0 at one point.

The second game was a much different story. SOO and TAN began the game with a 3-0 lead. ANTONIUS and KANTONO slowly inched their way closer, eventually surpassing SOO and TAN, 4-3. SOO and TAN answered with five straight points, taking the lead once again. The Malaysian pair built the lead to 11-6, but the Indonesians closed the gap to one point. SOO and TAN widened the margin, but ANTONIUS and KANTONO came within one point again, at 12-13, where SOO and TAN managed to hold them.

The third game was similar to the first, as ANTONIUS and KANTONO opened play with a 4-0 run and never allowed SOO and TAN to gain the upper hand. ANTONIUS and KANTONO built their lead to 10-3 before SOO and TAN tightened the game.

Medalists: Bronze: ANTONIUS and Denny KANTONO (INA)

"We played much better today than yesterday," said KANTONO.


Men's Singles Semifinals

HOYER-LARSEN to Meet DONG in the Final

Second-seeded Poul-Erik HOYER-LARSEN of Denmark defeated third-seeded Heryanto ARBI of Indonesia, 15-11, 15-6.

In the first game, HOYER-LARSEN gained an early lead at 4-2, but lost it when ARBI rallied, scoring seven straight points. HOYER-LARSEN managed to gain control and tie the game at 10-10. ARBI went up by a point, but could not hold HOYER-LARSEN's next onslaught. In the second game, HOYER-LARSEN started with a 4-0 lead, and ARBI never gained an edge in the game.

HOYER-LARSEN will meet China's DONG Jiong in Thursday's gold medal match, while ARBI will battle Malaysia's Rashid SIDEK for the bronze on Wednesday.

"Even though DONG is a fast player and ranked No. 1 in the world, I still think I have a good chance at winning," HOYER-LARSEN said. "I just need to keep on fighting, and everything will happen. I think my chances are 50-50."


Mixed Doubles Semifinals

Korea Dominates Mixed Doubles Competition

Both Korean mixed doubles teams defeated its Chinese opponents, guaranteeing Korea a gold and silver medal, while relegating China to a bronze.

Fifth-seeded KIM Dong Moon and GIL Young Ah (KOR) upset No. 3 seed CHEN Xingdong and PENG Xingyong (CHN), 15-6, 15-8. KIM and GIL forced CHEN and PENG to make several errors, particularly hitting into the net. In the match, CHEN and PENG committed 42 errors to KIM and GIL's 19.

Though the score may not indicate it, the match between top-seeded PARK Joo Bong and RA Kyung Min (KOR) and LIU Jianjun and SUN Man, the No. 4 seed, was considerably closer. PARK and RA won, 15-10, 15-4, but even in the second game, the serve changed hands 16 times. In the first game, PARK and RA were up 12-7, but allowed LIU and SUN to close to 10-13 before putting them away.

PARK and RA will face KIM and GIL in the gold medal match on Thursday, and LIU and SUN will face CHEN and PENG in the bronze medal match on Wednesday.


Men's Singles Semifinals

China's DONG Advances to Gold Medal Match

Fourth-seeded and No. 1 ranked DONG Jiong of the People's Republic of China defeated Malaysia's Rashid SIDEK, 15-6, 18-16, to advance to the gold medal match on Thursday, 1 August.

In the first game, DONG gained the early advantage, 3-0, and never relinquished the lead. SIDEK was down 5-11 when he scored his final point. The second game was much closer, with the score tied at six different times. SIDEK led 9-5 at one point, before DONG slowly climbed back into the lead. When SIDEK tied the game at 13-13, DONG set the game at five points. After setting the game, DONG immediately won the serve and scored four straight points. SIDEK closed to within one point before DONG won match point.

DONG will face the winner of Tuesday afternoon's match between Indonesia's Heryanto ARBI and Denmark's Poul-Erik HOYER-LARSEN on Thursday, and SIDEK will play the loser in Wednesday's bronze medal match.


Women's Singles Semifinals

BANG and AUDINA to Play in Gold Medal Match

Indonesia has a women's singles badminton player in the gold medal match, but it is not the player most expected. Indonesia's top women's singles player, second-seeded Susi SUSANTI, who won the gold medal in the event in the 1992 Olympic Games, will continue to fight for another medal. But this time the color is only bronze.

The country's gold medal hopeful this time is 16-year-old Mia AUDINA, who defeated Korea's KIM Ji Hyun, 11-6, 9-11, 11-1. KIM never even held the lead in the two games AUDINA won; however, AUDINA never held the lead in the second game. In the third game, KIM received the first serve, and then scored the first point. AUDINA went on a tear, scoring 11 unanswered points. She allowed KIM to gain the serve only four times.

SUSANTI lost a hard-fought match to Korea's BANG Soo Hyun, 11-9, 11-8. BANG, seeded third in the tournament, gained the early lead in both games. In each, she quickly lost it to SUSANTI. The lead changed hands four times in each game. In the first game, neither player led by more than three points. In the second game, that margin was just two points.

BANG will face AUDINA in the gold medal match on Thursday, 1 August, and SUSANTI will play KIM on Wednesday for the bronze medal.

"I analysed all Susi's skills on video, so I could easily read Susi's shots today," BANG said. "I was very calm throughout the whole match and could defend easily."


This is an official publication of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games Sports Publications Department.


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Closing Ceremony of the 1996 Games involved a crew of 2,100 who worked with more than 3,500 performers as well as thousands of athletes who celebrated on the field of Olympic Stadium.