August 27, (THEWILL) – Ye Zhaoying, a former badminton world number one, claims that she was ordered to lose the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games women’s singles semifinal matchup against Chinese compatriot, Gong Zhichao.
While Camilla Martin of Denmark and Dai Yun, who is also from China, were scheduled to face off in the second semifinal, Ye had advanced to the tournament’s final four.
Chinese officials concluded that Gong, the top seed, was the most likely to defeat Martin in the event that the Dane advances to the final because Ye and Gong were playing first, giving China the best opportunity to win the gold medal. Chinese team head coach, Li Yongbo and women’s singles head coach, Tang Xuehua, reportedly informed Ye the night before her match that she had to lose on purpose.
Revealing this in an interview, Ye said: “You feel very powerless because you are alone against the whole system. The Olympics are almost a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as an athlete, so it feels really sad when you have to let yourself lose. But as an individual, I could do nothing against the system.”
She claims they advised her not make it obvious to avoid wearing Gong out by forcing the match to three games. Ye received a bonus of CNY112,500 ($16,300/£13,900/€16,400), the same amount granted to an Olympic champion, for manipulating the outcome.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
