Kuala Lumpur: The World No. 1 badminton superstar Lee Chong Wei will have a chance of a lifetime to do something that not everyone gets to do, which is to carry Malaysia’s flag at the 2016 Olympics’ opening ceremonies in Rio de Janeiro.
Lee was chosen by the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) early June for the duty, and Lee received the flag from the Olympic Games chef-de-mission Tan Sri Dr Mohamed Al Amin Abdul Majid on Thursday after an Olympic send-off by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah at Malaysia’s royal palace.
Also presented at the ceremony were Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, Paralympic Games chef-de-mission Dr Ang Kaen Koo and other government officials.
Meanwhile, Lee Chong Wei’s coach Hendrawan showed a lot of confidence on Lee Chong Wei’s condition when he met with reporters.
“Chong Wei is injury-free, it’s different than 2012 where he had to be extremely careful during training over his London preparations after he sustained an ankle injury at the 2012 Thomas Cup in Wuhan,” said Hendrawan.
Hendrawan also told reporters that he would want Lee to maintain his condition and to avoid injury in the next 10 days.
When asked about the potential semi-final clash between Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan, Hendrawan said it is important to take things one match at a time, because all matches are important.