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Favourite China on medal quest at badminton worlds
China will look to bolster its already formidable reputation, while Malaysia is hoping there is strength in numbers at the world badminton championships which begin here Monday.
China heads to the 2005 International Badminton Federation World Championships as the top seeds in men's singles, women's singles and women's doubles. "We will not set any gold medal quota on the team, instead we only require them to do their best," Chinese chef de mission Liu Feng-yan said. China will be pinning their hopes in men's singles on southpaw Lin Dan, who is the number one ranked player in the world. The 21-year-old Lin is coming off a disappointing loss to Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei in the championship match of the Malaysian Open, the final tune-up to the worlds. The biggest challenge for Lin will come from 2004 Olympic gold medallist Taufik Hidayat, of Indonesia, and Denmark's Kenneth Jonassen. Fifth seed Lee and 2001 worlds runner-up Peter Gade, of Denmark, are also strong contenders. They are among the over 340 athletes from 50 countries who will compete in the seven-day event which is being hosted by the United States for the first time. Competition begins at the Anaheim Pond on Monday with first-round action. Reigning world champion and Olympic gold medallist Zhang Ning will be looking to retain her women's singles title by holding off Chinese compatriot and second seed Xie Xing-fang. Athens gold medallists Zhang Jun and Gao Ling will carry China's hope in the mixed doubles. They could be on a collision course with England's Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms who won the silver in Athens and are seeded second in the draw. The crowd favourites will be Americans Howard Bach and Tony Gunawan in the men's doubles. Last year's US Open and Dutch Open champions are ranked 12th in the world. Asian nations like China, Malaysia, South Korea and Indonesia are the traditional powerhouses in badminton. Malaysia is sending its largest ever contingent to a worlds with 21 athletes. Their best shot at a medal rests with Lee and world number eight Hafiz Hashim in men's singles. Hashim will have a harder time getting to the podium as he is on the same side of the draw as China's Lin. They could meet in the quarter-finals. He was one of a number of athletes competing in the worlds that had problems getting a visa to enter the US. Hashim's visa application wasn't approved until August 6, less than a week before he was scheduled to leave for Anaheim.
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