Kuala Lumpur: Four-time champion Lin Dan of China will defend his World Championship title in August, courtesy a wildcard given by the the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Thursday. The BWF's Committee of Management (COM) for the World Championships voted unanimously to award the legendary men's singles player a wildcard for the Aug 5-11 event to be held in Guangzhou, his homeland.
Exercising its prerogative to nominate a wildcard entry in each category, the COM determined the 29-year-old's stature and fan appeal would significantly enhance the championships. This was the only wildcard awarded.
Having competed in few tournaments since retaining his Olympic crown last summer, Lin Dan's international ranking fell, ruling him out of direct qualification for the World Championships.
His wildcard berth will likely re-ignite the rivalry between him and Malaysian archrival Lee Chong Wei. The latter is the reigning World No.1 but has lost to Lin Dan in major finals, including the gold-medal matches at the London 2012 and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games....
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04:25 PM, May 09, 2013
New Delhi: Magnus Carlsen has expressed "deep disappointment" at world chess governing body FIDE's decision to award the World Championship final to Viswanathan Anand's hometown Chennai accusing them of "lack of transparency." "I'm deeply disappointed and surprised by the FIDE decision to sign a contract for the 2013 match without going through the bidding process outlined in the WC regulations, and for not choosing neutral ground," Carlsen was quoted as...
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05:33 PM, Mar 14, 2013
Pankaj Advani is all set to skip the Asian Billiards Championship to take part in the World Championship Qualifiers. ...
07:55 PM, Feb 20, 2013
The 2009 US Open winner won 7-6 (2), 6-3. Benneteau, who beat No. 2-ranked Roger Federer in the quarterfinals, is now 0-8 in ATP finals. ...
09:30 PM, Feb 17, 2013
As part of his preparations, the Jamaican 100 and 200 metres world record holder will run the longer sprint at the Bislett Games Diamond League meeting in Oslo on June 13. ...
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The 22-year-old brought home India's first Olympic medal in badminton when she clinched the bronze in London last year. ...
12:30 PM, Jan 08, 2013
Lucknow: After her Olympic triumph, Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal is now eyeing to win the World Championship and the All England Championship next year. The bronze medal winner in the London Games, Saina stressed on developing the basic structure in the country in order to make it compete with China. Sahara India Pariwar, the business conglomerate, on Tuesday announced its association with Nehwal. As a part of the association Saina...
07:18 PM, Dec 18, 2012
Sao Paulo: Brazilian international star Neymar believes Corinthians can upset Chelsea in the final of the World Club Championship Sunday in Yokahoma, Japan. "I think it's possible that Corinthians could win. Football is unpredictable," the 20-year-old said. But come kick-off this weekend the Selecao striker confirmed he will be sitting firmly on the fence when the European and South American champions meet to decide the world crown as he has...
02:41 PM, Dec 15, 2012
Dubai: World number one Rory McIlroy and second-ranked Luke Donald gave the organisers and fans what they wanted when the pair set up a classic duel in the desert after the DP World Tour Championship third round on Saturday. The two Britons shot matching six-under-par 66s to sprint three strokes clear of their nearest rivals on 17-under 199 and will engage in a head-to-head showdown for the $1.33-million first prize...
08:47 PM, Nov 24, 2012
Dubai: Marc Warren shot a 6-under 66 on Thursday to take a one-stroke clubhouse lead in the opening round of the season-ending Dubai World Championship. Warren, looking for his first European Tour win since 2007, had three birdies over his first five holes and made seven total at the USD 8 million tournament. Fredrik Andersson Hed and Padraig Harrington each shot a 67, while Henrik Stenson was in a group...
06:31 PM, Nov 22, 2012
Dubai: Even after wrapping up the European Tour money title, top-ranked Rory McIlroy still has plenty to play for when he tees off on Thursday at the season-ending Dubai World Championship. A victory at the $8 million tournament will allow McIlroy to overtake Tiger Woods as the all-time leading money earner in a single season. Woods amassed a combined PGA and European Tour earning of $11,557,729 in 2007. A victory...
10:58 AM, Nov 21, 2012
New Delhi: With an Olympics bronze medal in his kitty, Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt now aims for the elusive World Championship medal. "My next aim is to win a World Championship medal. Having won a medal in all of the important wrestling tournaments in the world, the World Championship medal is the only one which eludes me. So I want it really badly," Yogeshwar told IANS. Yogeshwar won the bronze...
03:49 PM, Oct 29, 2012
India's ace boxer, Vijender Singh has left the London Olympics quarter-final loss behind and is now looking ahead to the World Championships. ...
08:59 PM, Oct 10, 2012
New Delhi: The London Olympics disappointment behind him, Indian boxing star Vijender Singh is all set to pack a heavier punch from next year when he goes up a division to light heavyweight (81kg) for the World Championships. "There is nothing much this year. I will be participating in the World championship in the 81kg category," Vijender, who lost in the quarter-finals of the London Games, said. The strapping six-footer...
03:16 PM, Oct 10, 2012
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03:52 PM, Sep 29, 2012
New Delhi: The government has decided to give out of turn promotions to sportspersons who win medals in international events like Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and World Championships. The union cabinet on Thursday approved a policy to give up to three out of turn promotions in the service for winning medals to sportspersons. The decision was announced on Friday. Officials said the sportsperson winning a medal or more...
03:10 PM, Jul 20, 2012
Chandigarh: Viswanathan Anand may have successfully defended his title, but the five-time world chess champion feels that weeks of intense training and hard work comes to nothing as it boils down to few last critical moments and grabbing the opportunity. "It's about the critical moments and these usually come down to few minutes or even few seconds apart from the one game. If you don't grab that opportunity when it...
05:35 PM, Jul 17, 2012
New Delhi: Young Tutul Ali is all set to start for San Diego to take part in the Callaway Junior World Championship, despite the fact that his father is a caddie and could not afford to fund his son's dream of playing golf. But Tutul was lucky - when he was just eight years old, one of India's leading professional golfers Indrajit Balotia took him under his wing. "My father...
10:33 AM, Jul 03, 2012
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08:38 AM, Jul 03, 2012
