Li Yinhui Retires from Badminton at 24, Citing Heart Issue

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Wishing Li Yinhui all the best in the next phase of her career. (photo: Shi Tang/Getty Images)
Wishing Li Yinhui all the best in the next phase of her career. (photo: Shi Tang/Getty Images)

Beijing: China’s former World No. 5 women’s doubles player – Li Yinhui has announced her retirement from badminton at the age of 24 due to a heart condition.

She wrote on her social media page that she decided to retire due to an illness called “bradycardia”.

Generally, you want a slower heart rate when you’re resting. It’s a sign of good health. But if it’s too slow, it could be a symptom of a condition called bradycardia. For normal people, our heartbeats 60 to 100 times a minute when we are at rest. But with bradycardia, it goes down to less than 60 beats a minute.

In Li Yinhui’s case, her resting heartbeat is extremely slow – only 37 beats a minute.

“This is a very difficult decision for me. In the past few months, I have been actively undergoing treatment for my body. A few years ago I, unfortunately, contracted pneumonia and then a high fever during a tournament. The high fever lasted for a long time. Since that time, my body has not been as good as before. On top of my original heart problems, where my resting heart rate is 37, the progress of my recovery was not optimal.

I remembered I had to play few matches with fever and I had to take pain-killer medicine before those matches. I always had a low-grade fever after intense training and I also have a long-term low blood pressure problem. But at that time, I have set my goals in badminton and I want to try my best to achieve those targets.

I have been actively looking for ways to treat my illness after the Tokyo Olympics, the staff and coaches have given me a lot of help. But unfortunately, at this stage, I cannot continue high-intensity training, and I would need to take medication on a long-term basis. Therefore, I can only choose to leave the badminton court and leave the national team temporarily.

I am very grateful to be part of the Chinese badminton team. I have witnessed countless historical moments with my own eyes in the past 9 years, and I have also worked hard to create my own moments. The spirit of badminton and my love for the sport will forever be in my heart, and I am very grateful for that.

Thanks to the team, leaders, and coaches for their care for me, the people who support me, and those who love me. It is you who have given me courage and strength. Hope we can meet somewhere in the days to come.”

Li Yinhui and Du Yue’s World No. 8 women’s doubles ranking has been removed from the BWF rankings published on Jan 25, 2022.

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