Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min gets first win in Olympics
PARIS – Singapore badminton player Yeo Jia Min cruised to victory on July 27 to get off to a winning start in her women’s singles Group I campaign at the Paris Olympics.
The 25-year-old came up against Iran-born Dorsa Yavarivafa – the 1,001st-ranked player competes for the Refugee Olympic Team – who had the support of the capacity 8,000-strong crowd at the La Chapelle Arena.
World No. 20 Yeo will next face Mauritius’ 94th-ranked Kate Foo Kune, and a win would seal her first appearance in the Olympics knockout round.
However, in the mixed doubles, teammates Terry Hee and Jessica Tan’s hopes of making it to the quarter-finals hang by a thread after the world No. 17 pair lost 23-21, 21-12 to Malaysia’s ninth-ranked Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei.
They are in Group D alongside China’s world No. 2 Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping, and world No. 30 Americans Vinson Chiu and Jennie Gai, and have to beat both pairs to stand a good chance of advancing.
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