Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik win Malaysia’s first medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
National men’s doubles pair Aaron-Wooi Yik secured the bronze medal by overcoming world No.2 Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen from Denmark with scores of 16-21, 22-20, 21-19. The match took place at Adidas Arena in Port de la Chapelle on Sunday, August 4.
Astrup and Rasmussen brought the heat in the first game, maintaining the lead throughout a closely contested match. Despite Aaron and Wooi Yik starting off nervously and committing numerous unforced errors, they lost the first game, which put them in a challenging position. In the second game, trailing 16-20 seemed to leave them in a hopeless situation. However, the Malaysian pair refused to give up. They mounted a dramatic comeback, saving four match points and leveling the score at 20-20. With renewed determination, they eventually secured the second game 22-20, pushing the match into the rubber game.
Aaron and Wooi Yik then seized control of the third game, establishing a 10-6 lead and extending it to a six-point advantage at 13-7. Despite some tense moments as the Danes ramped up their play and equalized at 17-17 and again at 19-19, the Malaysians held their nerve. Ultimately, they secured the win with a final score of 21-19, clinching the bronze medal.
Aaron and Wooi Yik finished as Group A runners-up, suffering a loss to Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang with scores of 22-24, 14-21. However, they bounced back with victories over Great Britain’s Ben Lane and Sean Vendy (19-21, 21-16, 21-11) on Saturday, and Canada’s Adam Dong and Nyl Yakura (21-10, 21-15) on Sunday, securing their spot in the quarter-finals. They advanced to the semi-finals but fell short of the top two spots after a tough match against the top-seeded Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang from China, losing 19-21, 21-15, 17-21.
Aaron-Wooi Yik previously won the bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. They are also the first doubles pair in the country to win two medals in the Olympics.
Datuk Lee Chong Wei Describes Aaron-Wooi Yik’s Bronze Medal Battle As a 'Crazy Game'
“The second game, most people would think it’s a lost cause. But the both of you never gave up, and you crawled back, point by point, and made us proud. One of the best comebacks Malaysians have ever seen. Congrats Aaron-Wooi Yik,” said Chong Wei.
“I don’t wish for you to be like me with three medals of the same colour. For your next medal, I pray it’s a different colour.
“Thank you Aaron-Wooi Yik. You are once again the heroes of the nation. Malaysia is now officially on the Olympic medal standings,” he added.
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