Badminton: Rio 2016 champion Carolina Marin injured in semis

Spain’s Carolina Marin injured her knee and was forced the forfeit the women’s singles semi-final badminton match against He Bingjiao of the People’s Republic of China at Paris 2024.

Marin, Rio 2016 gold medallist and a three-time world champion, had clinched the first game 21-14 and was leading the second at the La Chapelle Arena. However, while returning a shot from He Bingjiao, Marin landed awkwardly on her right knee.

While she tried to play through the injury, the Spaniard had to retire from the match due to the intensity of her knock.

This meant that He Bingjiao went through to the women’s singles badminton final at the Paris 2024 Olympics and is assured a medal.

Speaking after the match, He Bingjiao said, “I feel very sad about this. She told me she was having problems with her ankle and still managed to win (her previous matches) with this. I hope she will recover quickly and get back to playing again.”

Incidentally, players were injured in the women’s singles semi-finals at London 2012 (Wang Xin) and Rio 2016 (Li Xuerui) too.