Badminton great Chen Long 'full of emotion' as he retires at 34

BEIJING – Chinese badminton great Chen Long has announced his retirement at the age of 34, ending a decorated career that included Olympic gold and two world titles.

The former world No. 1 won the Olympic crown at Rio 2016 and followed it up with silver at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

He has not played since and has now officially called it quits, following in the steps of legendary Chinese player and team-mate Lin Dan, who retired in 2020.

“This is a difficult moment for me. It’s so hard to say goodbye,” Chen wrote on the Twitter-like Weibo late on Friday.

“At this special moment, I’m really full of emotion. I want to say thank you to the Chinese badminton team, my family and the fans.

“Badminton is the love of my life. I was lucky enough to wear the national shirt and play for my country, because not all dreams come true in life.”

Chen also explained the reason for his stepping down at a retirement ceremony held by the Chinese Badminton Association at the Suzhou Olympic Sports Centre, where the Sudirman Cup is being played.

“I decided to retire from the national team after discussing with my family, because I wasn’t able to accompany my son for a long time during my preparations for Tokyo 2020,” he said.

“Because Little Coffee (the nickname of his son) is already two years old, it was not easy for my wife (former world No. 1 Wang Shixian) to take care of the whole family all by herself.”

Chen is China’s most successful badminton men’s singles player after Lin.

Besides his Olympic gold and silver, he also clinched bronze at London 2012, while he won the World Championships twice in 2014 and 2015, as well as five Sudirman Cup and three Thomas Cup wins.

Chen’s achievements were often overshadowed by the more charismatic Lin, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and five-time world champion.

Teammates Zhang Nan, 33, Liu Cheng, 31, and Li Junhui, 28 also announced their retirement and were feted alongside Chen at the retirement ceremony.

Zhang Jun, chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association, expressed his gratitude to the four players for their contributions to the Chinese badminton team over the years. AFP, XINHUA