Eason Chan uses his celebrity power to give national badminton team more exposure

Badminton is now Eason Chan Yik-shun's favourite sport, and we'll soon be seeing him waving rackets and rubbing shoulders with top players from China's national team.

His rise to badminton's hall of fame appears to have been faster than the rise of his show business career. Truth be told, the national team can also use Chan's celebrity power to promote the sport.

Chan was named the national team's honourable guest player at a press conference on Tuesday at W hotel. Coach Li Yongbo gave him a team jersey with his name on it.

Call it beginner's luck, Chan (left) even beat Lin Dan (right), the Olympic-medal-winning player, up on the stage. The game was unusual though - the duo battled a balloon with oversized rackets.

'I've won gold medals before, too. Those are music awards though. Hey, but still, I'm quite good at this,' said Chan, waving his giant racket to make a point.

Chan said he practised badminton with celebrity friends - such as actress Shu Qi, filmmaker Vincent Kok Tak-chiu and songwriter Eric Kwok. They book a private badminton court every week.