A 17-year-old Chinese badminton player died after collapsing on the court during a match during an Asian tournament organized in Indonesia, organizers announced on Monday July 1.
“He collapsed on the ground”
“Chinese singles player Zhang Zhijie collapsed on the court during a match this evening,” said the Asian Badminton Confederation and the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI) in a joint statement.
Zhang Zhijie fell ill while facing Japan’s Kazuma Kawano in the first set, 11-11, at the Asian Junior Badminton Championships in Yogyakarta on the Indonesian island of Java. “He was taken to hospital where he died at 11:20 p.m.,” Sunday June 30, specifies the press release.
The Chinese Badminton Association joined the two organizations that issued the statement in expressing “deepest condolences to the parents and family” of the player. Zhang Zhijie started playing badminton at a young age, in kindergarten, and joined the Chinese junior national team last year.
Earlier this year, he won the singles title at the Dutch Junior International, a prestigious youth tournament played in Haarlem, the Netherlands. On Monday, a minute of silence was observed during the team tournament which continues in Yogyakarta and the Chinese team wore black armbands as a sign of respect.
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Indian player Pusarla Venkata Sindhu, who won Olympic silver and bronze in 2016 and 2021 respectively, called Zhang’s death “absolutely heartbreaking.” “The world has lost a remarkable talent today,” she wrote on the network Xpresenting “his most sincere condolences” to the family of the young Chinese player.
2024-07-01 05:24:58
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