Denmark's Viktor Axelsen defeated defending champion Chen Long in straight games and won the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics 2020. The Danish shuttler couldn't believe the result and broke down in what was the best and the most emotional moment of his glorious career. He also became the first non-European champion in 25 years in the men's singles category.
In 1996, Denmark's Poul-Erik Hoyer Larsen won the gold medal in Atlanta and was the lone non-Asian champion in the category. Hoyer Larsen is the current BWF President.
After a close fight early in the contest when the scores were 9-9, Axelsen dominated the game to wrap up the first game 21-15. Chen Long couldn't make a comeback in the second set and Axelsen became the first non-chinese gold medallist in the men's singles category since Taufik Hidayat in 2004.
"I still have to take this all in. This is the biggest achievement you can have as a badminton player and this means the world to me," said Axelsen.
"When you win an Olympic final in straight games like this against Cheng Long, I think you can say that you've been at least really, really close to your best," added Axelsen who won the gold medal without losing a game in Tokyo.
Axelsen lost the semi-final to Long in the 2016 Rio Olympics. The Chinese shuttler went on to win the gold medal after defeating Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia.
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