After claiming Thomas Cup glory, Cai and Fu now want an Olympic crown
After helping the country claim its fifth Thomas Cup in a row, China's top men's doubles combination has set its sights on delivering the nation its first Olympic gold medal in the event in London.
Despite boasting a world No 1 ranking and tremendous title success since 2008, Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng are yet to savor Olympic glory and squandered their chance four years ago when they fell to the Indonesian duo of Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan in the Beijing Olympic final.
After beating the South Koreans, who upset them in the semis of the Sudirman Cup (the world mixed team championship) last year, the Cai-Fu pairing has rediscovered its top form in time for what could be an Olympic swansong.
"We have used the Thomas Cup as a tune-up leading to London. The title here will definitely boost our confidenct for the Games," Cai said after routing the Korean pair of Lee Yong-dae and Kim Sa-rang 21-16, 25-23 in the first doubles match on Sunday.
China's Olympic and world champion Lin "Super" Dan thrashed archrival Lee Hyun-il, 21-14, 21-17, in the final's opening singles battle, while world No 3 Chen Long breezed past Korean Shon Wan-ho, 21-9, 21-13 in the third match to seal China's fifth Thomas Cup in a row.
Under great pressure to make a breakthrough in the doubles at the Olympics, Cai said mental strength was the key to winning on the courts in London.
"Olympics is a test of your psychology. The skills are pretty even on that stage and whoever can beat the pressure will win the title," said 32-year-old Cai.
Fu, 28, supported his partner, claiming "we will be trying to challenge our opponents we won't be fighting with the target on our backs".
The Koreans also feel confident heading towards London after losing to China with a below full-strength squad. That nation won doubles gold at the 1992 and 2004 Olympic Games.
Due to an injury to his long-time partner, Jung Jae-sung, Lee teamed with the young Kim for the Thomas Cup.
When he reunites with his former teammate, the world No 2 combination of Lee and Jung will be among the favorites for Olympic gold.
"It was a good test for the new pair - facing the Chinese duo," Korea's head coach, Sung Han-kook, said. "According to our current status, the new pair is capable of competing against China for the doubles title in London. But Jung will come back to play with Lee, and they will be more competitive."
Sunday night also saw new benchmarks set by the Chinese badminton squad.
The men's team tied Indonesia's five straight Thomas Cup titles.
"It's a hard thing to accomplish at a biennial event. It means you have to stay in top form consistently for 10 years. Indonesia used to be our model, now we are even and we will try to surpass it," said China's head coach, Li Yongbo.
With another Thomas Cup title, Lin has accumulated 16 crowns at world-class events the Olympics, Worlds and Sudirman and Thomas cups, to become the only male in history to reach that mark.
Lin's feat has prompted comparisons with other Chinese sporting icons, including Olympic champion hurdler Liu Xiang and Grand Slam winner Li Na.
However, coach Li shrugged off the hype, saying, "Lin is the greatest ever in badminton and has no need to be mentioned together with Liu and Li".
The coach also denied Lin, Cai and Fu would retire after the Olympics.
"I've never heard of that from their mouths. I will try to retain them after London and ask for better post-career arrangements for them," said Li. "But I will also respect their choice if they make that decision."
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Spain's support cast stars, Germany flops
Defending European champion Spain showed off its impressive strength in depth when a second-string side defeated Serbia 2-0, but fellow Euro 2012 favorite Germany slumped to a shock 5-3 defeat to Switzerland.
On a busy weekend of friendlies ahead of Euro 2012, which gets underway in less than two weeks, Spain coach Vicente del Bosque fielded a host of fringe players with Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao stars having played in Friday's Spanish Cup final.
That left the door open for the likes of Atletico Madrid's Adrian Lopez to state his case, and he didn't disappoint, heading the world champion into a 64th-minute lead.
Adrian was also instrumental in Spain's second goal 11 minutes later when he earned a penalty after being felled by Serbia captain Branislav Ivanovic, with the spotkick converted by Santi Cazorla.
"We're not at all surprised by what the new faces brought to the game. We picked them for that," said Del Bosque, who names his final squad for the European championship on Sunday.
"Now, for the final list, we have to put into perspective this one match and the way in which the players have performed throughout the season."
Spain kicks off its Group C campaign against Italy on June 10, followed by the Republic of Ireland on June 14 and wrapping up with Croatia on June 18.
In Basel, Germany, who rested its eight-strong Bayern Munich contingent, suffered an error-plagued 5-3 defeat to Switzerland.
It was a first win for Switzerland, who failed to qualify for Euro 2012, over Germany since 1956.
Joachim Loew's Germany qualified for Euro 2012 without losing a match, but it has now lost two friendlies in succession having been defeated 2-1 by France in February. Its last friendly will be against Israel on May 31 before embarking on its Euro campaign against Portugal, Netherlands and Denmark in Group B.
Agence France-Presse
On a busy weekend of friendlies ahead of Euro 2012, which gets underway in less than two weeks, Spain coach Vicente del Bosque fielded a host of fringe players with Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao stars having played in Friday's Spanish Cup final.
That left the door open for the likes of Atletico Madrid's Adrian Lopez to state his case, and he didn't disappoint, heading the world champion into a 64th-minute lead.
Adrian was also instrumental in Spain's second goal 11 minutes later when he earned a penalty after being felled by Serbia captain Branislav Ivanovic, with the spotkick converted by Santi Cazorla.
"We're not at all surprised by what the new faces brought to the game. We picked them for that," said Del Bosque, who names his final squad for the European championship on Sunday.
"Now, for the final list, we have to put into perspective this one match and the way in which the players have performed throughout the season."
Spain kicks off its Group C campaign against Italy on June 10, followed by the Republic of Ireland on June 14 and wrapping up with Croatia on June 18.
In Basel, Germany, who rested its eight-strong Bayern Munich contingent, suffered an error-plagued 5-3 defeat to Switzerland.
It was a first win for Switzerland, who failed to qualify for Euro 2012, over Germany since 1956.
Joachim Loew's Germany qualified for Euro 2012 without losing a match, but it has now lost two friendlies in succession having been defeated 2-1 by France in February. Its last friendly will be against Israel on May 31 before embarking on its Euro campaign against Portugal, Netherlands and Denmark in Group B.
Agence France-Presse
Debut victory for Hodgson
England downs Norway 1-0 in warm-up match, but midfielder Barry injured
Roy Hodgson was left sweating on an injury to Gareth Barry after launching his reign as England manager with a 1-0 win over Norway at the Ullevaal Stadium.
Barry had come on as a half-time replacement for captain Steven Gerrard but lasted barely 30 minutes before hobbling off with a groin injury that leaves him in doubt for the upcoming Euro 2012 chapionship.
The Manchester City midfielder faces a scan on Sunday to determine the seriousness of the injury, but with England needing to confirm its final squad for the tournament by Tuesday, Hodgson has little time to play with.
If Barry's injury is serious, it could open the door to Liverpool's Jordan Henderson or another player on the list of five stand-ins named when Hodgson unveiled his original 23-man squad this month.
Hodgson refused to speculate on the severity of Barry's injury but acknowledged he was "worried" by the development.
"I'm not prepared to say it's serious at the moment," Hodgson said.
"All I'm going to say is that it's going to demand our attention and, as you all know, we don't have a lot of time if the scan shows that there is something more than minor."
Meanwhile, Hodgson insisted he was satisfied with a solid but unspectacular performance from England, who scored the game's only goal through Ashley Young early in the first half.
"I thought we showed a lot of discipline. I thought we worked very hard," Hodgson said. "I don't think we were as good going forward as we have the potential to be.
"But I'm not prepared to be critical of our team or anything about our play tonight. It's very much a work in progress - after three days with this team I've got to be satisfied that we've come here, given a more than reasonable performance and come away with a win."
Hodgson also praised the contributions of goalscorer Young and his strike partner Andy Carroll, who is now expected to start England's opening two Euro 2012 matches in the absence of the suspended Wayne Rooney.
"I thought he was good. Full-stop," Hodgson replied when asked about Carroll's contribution.
The England manager also challenged Manchester United star Young to use next month's Euros as the platform to announce himself on the world stage.
"I think he's at the right age, the right time in his career, if he's going to be a top international player," Hodgson said.
"The platform is there for him in the coming Euros, and not only the Euros, but in the years to come.
"He's had a pretty good season with Manchester United but with all the talent he possesses, now is the moment for him to really kick on and blossom even more."
England will regroup this week ahead of Saturday's friendly against Belgium at Wembley, when Hodgson will also have Chelsea's contingent of Champions League winners John Terry, Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole and Gary Cahill - available.
However, Hodgson was coy when asked if the starting XI chosen to face Belgium next week would most likely be the team to face France in Donetsk on June 11.
"Allow me to be satisfied with what I've seen from these players tonight and then I'll turn my attention towards the team to play Belgium," Hodgson said.
"I suppose the obvious answer is that there is a good chance that some of the players that play against Belgium will play against France but a few players have put a few spanners in the works and given me something to think about."
Hodgson also backed defender captain Steven Gerrard, who was relentlessly booed by the home crowd before being substituted at half-time after a thumping tackle on Tom Hogli that led to the Norwegian defender limping out of the game.
"All those tackles when somebody comes out on the wrong end of it are heavily criticized," Hodgson said. "But I thought it was a fair tackle. There was no intent to injure.
"I can understand the referee in a friendly match penalizing it with a freekick but my take is that it was a strong and brave tackle and the type of challenge.
"I hope our players are going to be putting in at the Euros because it shows their commitment."
Agence France-Presse in Oslo
Roy Hodgson was left sweating on an injury to Gareth Barry after launching his reign as England manager with a 1-0 win over Norway at the Ullevaal Stadium.
Barry had come on as a half-time replacement for captain Steven Gerrard but lasted barely 30 minutes before hobbling off with a groin injury that leaves him in doubt for the upcoming Euro 2012 chapionship.
The Manchester City midfielder faces a scan on Sunday to determine the seriousness of the injury, but with England needing to confirm its final squad for the tournament by Tuesday, Hodgson has little time to play with.
If Barry's injury is serious, it could open the door to Liverpool's Jordan Henderson or another player on the list of five stand-ins named when Hodgson unveiled his original 23-man squad this month.
Hodgson refused to speculate on the severity of Barry's injury but acknowledged he was "worried" by the development.
"I'm not prepared to say it's serious at the moment," Hodgson said.
"All I'm going to say is that it's going to demand our attention and, as you all know, we don't have a lot of time if the scan shows that there is something more than minor."
Meanwhile, Hodgson insisted he was satisfied with a solid but unspectacular performance from England, who scored the game's only goal through Ashley Young early in the first half.
"I thought we showed a lot of discipline. I thought we worked very hard," Hodgson said. "I don't think we were as good going forward as we have the potential to be.
"But I'm not prepared to be critical of our team or anything about our play tonight. It's very much a work in progress - after three days with this team I've got to be satisfied that we've come here, given a more than reasonable performance and come away with a win."
Hodgson also praised the contributions of goalscorer Young and his strike partner Andy Carroll, who is now expected to start England's opening two Euro 2012 matches in the absence of the suspended Wayne Rooney.
"I thought he was good. Full-stop," Hodgson replied when asked about Carroll's contribution.
The England manager also challenged Manchester United star Young to use next month's Euros as the platform to announce himself on the world stage.
"I think he's at the right age, the right time in his career, if he's going to be a top international player," Hodgson said.
"The platform is there for him in the coming Euros, and not only the Euros, but in the years to come.
"He's had a pretty good season with Manchester United but with all the talent he possesses, now is the moment for him to really kick on and blossom even more."
England will regroup this week ahead of Saturday's friendly against Belgium at Wembley, when Hodgson will also have Chelsea's contingent of Champions League winners John Terry, Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole and Gary Cahill - available.
However, Hodgson was coy when asked if the starting XI chosen to face Belgium next week would most likely be the team to face France in Donetsk on June 11.
"Allow me to be satisfied with what I've seen from these players tonight and then I'll turn my attention towards the team to play Belgium," Hodgson said.
"I suppose the obvious answer is that there is a good chance that some of the players that play against Belgium will play against France but a few players have put a few spanners in the works and given me something to think about."
Hodgson also backed defender captain Steven Gerrard, who was relentlessly booed by the home crowd before being substituted at half-time after a thumping tackle on Tom Hogli that led to the Norwegian defender limping out of the game.
"All those tackles when somebody comes out on the wrong end of it are heavily criticized," Hodgson said. "But I thought it was a fair tackle. There was no intent to injure.
"I can understand the referee in a friendly match penalizing it with a freekick but my take is that it was a strong and brave tackle and the type of challenge.
"I hope our players are going to be putting in at the Euros because it shows their commitment."
Agence France-Presse in Oslo
Monday, April 16, 2012
Women’s volleyball team sings for London
The women's national volleyball team of China held a karaoke contest as players received intensive training for the London Olympics in Zhangzhou, East China's Fujian province.
Assistant coach Lai Yawen compered the contest while Xu Li, director of the Volleyball Management Center of China’s General Administration of Sports, and Chen Zhonghe, former coach of the national women's volleyball team worked as judges, China Sports Daily reported.
Chen, now vice-director of the Fujian provincial sports bureau, started the contest by offering his favorite "Keep Working Hard to Win." Head coach Yu Juemin, trainers Bao Zhuang and Shi Hairong, and doctor Wang Kai formed a quartet to sing the inspiring “True Hero.”
Spikers Fan Linlin and Hui Ruoqi, newcomer Liu Congcong, and libero Zhang Xian all joined the contest, which was held to get them to relax after their stressful training.
Assistant coach Lai Yawen compered the contest while Xu Li, director of the Volleyball Management Center of China’s General Administration of Sports, and Chen Zhonghe, former coach of the national women's volleyball team worked as judges, China Sports Daily reported.
Chen, now vice-director of the Fujian provincial sports bureau, started the contest by offering his favorite "Keep Working Hard to Win." Head coach Yu Juemin, trainers Bao Zhuang and Shi Hairong, and doctor Wang Kai formed a quartet to sing the inspiring “True Hero.”
Spikers Fan Linlin and Hui Ruoqi, newcomer Liu Congcong, and libero Zhang Xian all joined the contest, which was held to get them to relax after their stressful training.
Muamba discharged from hospital month after heart attack
Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba was discharged from the London Chest Hospital on Monday and said he would be forever in debt to the doctors who saved his life.
Muamba has made a miraculous recovery after being described by his club doctor as "in effect dead" for 78 minutes following a cardiac arrest during his side's FA Cup quarter-final against Tottenham Hotspur last month.
The 24-year-old needed 15 defibrillator shocks to restart his heart after collapsing on the White Hart Lane pitch on March 17.
"I am naturally very pleased to be discharged from hospital and would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to every single member of staff at The London Chest Hospital who have played a part in my care," he said in a statement.
"Their dedication, professionalism and expertise is simply amazing and I will forever be in their debt. I also wish to say thank you to all the many well-wishers who have sent thousands of messages of support.
"Now I am out of hospital, I am looking forward to continuing my recovery and spending precious time with my family."
Muamba's hospital exit comes days after Livorno's Piermario Morosini died after suffering a cardiac arrest during an Italian second division game at Pescara on Saturday.
The 25-year-old former Italy Under-21 international collapsed in the 31st minute and was pronounced dead after his arrival at hospital.
Muamba has made a miraculous recovery after being described by his club doctor as "in effect dead" for 78 minutes following a cardiac arrest during his side's FA Cup quarter-final against Tottenham Hotspur last month.
The 24-year-old needed 15 defibrillator shocks to restart his heart after collapsing on the White Hart Lane pitch on March 17.
"I am naturally very pleased to be discharged from hospital and would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to every single member of staff at The London Chest Hospital who have played a part in my care," he said in a statement.
"Their dedication, professionalism and expertise is simply amazing and I will forever be in their debt. I also wish to say thank you to all the many well-wishers who have sent thousands of messages of support.
"Now I am out of hospital, I am looking forward to continuing my recovery and spending precious time with my family."
Muamba's hospital exit comes days after Livorno's Piermario Morosini died after suffering a cardiac arrest during an Italian second division game at Pescara on Saturday.
The 25-year-old former Italy Under-21 international collapsed in the 31st minute and was pronounced dead after his arrival at hospital.
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