The badminton player Ye Zhaoying, former world number 1, has just confessed that he was ordered to lose the semifinal match of the Sydney Olympics against his compatriot Gong Zhichao, as reported by the Danish broadcaster TV 2 Sport and echoes Brand.
According to these sources, the Instruction came from the Chinese team coaches who thought Zhichao would have a better chance of winning the gold in the final. The other semifinal was disputed by the Danish Camilla Martin and the also Chinese Dai Yun.
China team head coach Li Yongbo and women’s singles head coach Tang Xuehua Ye was told the night before his match that he had to lose on purpose.
Gong Zhichao defeated Ye Zhaoying by a double 11-8. Then, in the final, she beat Denmark’s Martin 13-10, 11-3. Ye Zhaoying had to settle for bronze after beating Dai Yun 8-11, 11-2, 11-6.
“You feel very powerless because you are alone against the whole system”Ye said, in an interview to TV 2 Sport. “The Games are almost a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as an athlete, so you feel very sad when you have to let yourself lose,” the Olympic bronze medalist notes.
The defeat could not be too exaggerated, but it should not tire Gong either, so the match had to end in two sets.. Ye received from China the same money in cash as her partner, concludes the report of Brand.
