PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia’s former world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei has announced his retirement from professional badminton after an illustrious 19-year career.
The decision did not come as a surprise, having been reported by the Malaysian media last week. It also follows on from Lee’s battle with nose cancer last year, which kept him out of the World Championships.
His last tournament victory was the Malaysian Open last year, winning his 12th title in 14 attempts.
“Today (Thursday) everyone know more or less my intention for calling this press conference. I would like to announce that I’m retiring from the sport after 19 years,” said the 36-year-old badminton legend, who was emotional and teary eyed during a packed press conference at the Menara KBS here.
“It was a tough decision to make but I was left with no option after my recent consultation with doctors in Taiwan last month.
“I was given eight questionnaires to answer about my conditions and the outcome came out to show that I’m not fit to do high intensity activities. So it’s not suitable for me to exert myself for the sake of my health.
“I want to thank you Malaysians.
“I want to thank a lot of people KBS, ISN. I want to thank all my coaches Datuk Misbun Sidek, Datuk Tey Seu Bock,” said Chong Wei while trying to hold back tears.
Chong Wei was diagnosed with nose cancer in July last year.
After treatment in Taiwan, he announced in a press conference in November that he had no intention to retire and would give the Olympic glory one last shot in Tokyo next year.
He was a three-time Silver medallist in Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016.
Besides missing the Olympic gold, Chong Wei will now also step down without having an elusive world title to his name.
He finished runner-up in his three world championships outings in London (2011), Guangzhou (2013) and Jakarta (2015).
But no one can take away the fact that he’s one of the best men’s singles shuttler the world has ever seen.
In all, he had bagged 69 titles throughout his career. That includes a staggering 46 titles in the now-defunct Superseries – the Badminton World Federation’s (BWF) top-flight circuit.
He also spent a whopping 349 weeks, including a 199-week streak from 2008-2012 as the world No. 1.
