Singaporeans have become accustomed to Loh Kean Yew’s heroics on the badminton court, with his world championship win the most memorable.
However, many might be surprised that he hasn’t yet prevailed in Asia.
That might change soon, as he has just advanced to the finals of the Badminton Asia Championships.
He’s also made history again as the first Singaporean to get to this stage.
Loh, ranked world No. 7, competed in the men’s singles semi-final on Saturday (16 Jul) at the Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamdan Indoor Hall in Dubai.
His opponent was China’s Lu Guangzu — ranked world No. 14.
The 25-year-old Singaporean won in two straight sets of 21-19, 21-15 in 45 minutes, according to The Straits Times (ST).
Things didn’t look too good at the start when Loh trailed Lu by 11-9 at one point in the first game.
While neither player had a lead of more than three points, Loh eked out a win in the game’s final points.
In the second game, the two were still neck and neck until Loh levelled the score at 5-5.
He would go on to run up a 9-5 lead and never looked back from that, as Lu failed to level the score no matter what he did.
Ultimately, Loh took the last four points to win the game, raising his arms in jubilation when it was confirmed.
This win makes Loh the first Singaporean to reach a final of the Badminton Asia Championships.
If he prevails in the final, he will be the eighth player of all time to become both world champion and Asian champion.
Of course, he already won the world championship in Dec 2021, so all he needs is a win in the Badminton Asia Championships final to complete the set.
He told ST that he’s “happy to create history” and will continue to focus on the next match, pledging to give his all.
However, Loh will face a formidable opponent in the final on Sunday (30 Apr).
He’s up against Indonesia’s Anthony Ginting — currently ranked world No. 2.
If that name sounds familiar, Ginting is the player who defeated Loh on home ground in the semi-finals of the Singapore Open last year.
In fact, Loh has lost to Ginting in their last three encounters, so he has a tough job on his hands indeed.
Whatever happens, at least he can rest assured that he’s already made Singapore proud with his historic achievements in the Badminton Asia Championships.
The whole nation will be rooting for him as he attempts to make history once again.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Mediacorp on Facebook and Loh Kean Yew on Facebook via Badminton Photo.
The Paradise Tree Snake may have misjudged its landing and ended up on the car.
The 69-year-old was reportedly upset over his neighbour's refusal to apologise.
False claims include that GCB transactions occur without government checks on beneficial owners' identities.
The suspect casually watched as the woman became consumed by flames.
The thief left the wallet and more than RM200 behind, presumably to mislead the 72-year-old…
Such poor sportsmanship.