Tokyo Olympics: Viktor Axelsen thanks his ‘inspiration’ Chen Long after beating Chinese star to badminton gold
- Danish No 4 seed secures 2-0 victory in men’s singles final, and admits ‘I think you can say I’ve been at my absolute best’
- Chen falls short in effort to emulate compatriot Lin Dan – who won in Beijing and London – with back-to-back Games golds
Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen beat China’s Chen Long to win the men’s singles badminton final at the Musashino Forest Sports Park Plaza on Monday night, ending the Chinese star’s hopes of back-to-back golds.
Tears in Tokyo as China end Lang Ping era with win
Axelsen is only the second non-Asian winner of the title, after fellow Dane Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen at Atlanta 1996, and the first non-Asian to win more than one Games medal.
“When I won the last point I couldn’t think, I couldn’t feel anything, I could only feel a big rush of adrenaline, of happiness, that all the hard work is worth it,” the 27-year-old said. “This is the biggest dream of mine coming true, I simply can’t believe it.”
“I can’t really describe my feelings. This is the biggest achievement of my career so to have this around my neck is the most awesome feeling ever.”
“I think you can say that I’ve been at my absolute best,” he added. “When you win an Olympic final in straight games like this against Chen Long, you’ve been at least really, really close to your best, I’m so happy.”
Chen, who had been the reigning Olympic champion, knocked Axelsen out in the Rio semi-finals five years ago, when the Dane went on to win bronze. The pair shared an emotional embrace at the end of their final on Monday.
“Obviously I respect Chen Long a lot,” Axelsen said. “He came over to my side of the court and told me that I deserved it and that my performance here has been great. I said, ‘Thank you so much’ and told him he has been a big inspiration to me. Then I asked him if we could change shirts, and we did.”
The 32-year-old Chen was aiming to emulate compatriot Lin Dan – who won in Beijing in 2008 and London four years later – in defending his Games title, after defying the odds to make the final.
Chen did not play at all this year on the tour and only played twice in 2020, most recently 15 months ago, while Axelsen arrived in Tokyo as the world No 2.
In winning a third Olympic medal in the men’s singles, Chen matched Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei.
Chen’s defeat by Axelsen followed another badminton silver for China earlier in the day.
