Malaysia's badminton king

Lee Chong Wei retires

June 13, 2019 17:02 pm +08

KUALA LUMPUR (June 13): Malaysia's badminton king Lee Chong Wei, a three-time

Olympic silver medalist and former world number one, announced his retirement on

Thursday, as prolonged health issues after battling cancer dashed his hopes of a comeback.

Lee, who was diagnosed with early stage nose cancer last year, said he opted to retire after

being told by doctors that his body could no longer take the intense training needed for high-

level competition. "It was a very heavy decision for me because I really love this sport, but

the important thing now is my health," he told a news conference before breaking into tears.

Lee is one of Malaysia's most popular and successful sportsmen. In 2006, he reached the

number one ranking, a position he would go on to hold for a record 348 weeks in total. He

took a break from competition last September for cancer treatment, but returned to training

in January with the goal of attaining Malaysian's maiden gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo

Olympics.

Months, however, passed without any sign of Lee returning to competition. His ranking

slipped to 191 in the world, erasing hopes that he would be able to qualify for Tokyo. While

he will no longer be competing, Lee said he will still be heading to Japan in 2020 as

Malaysia's chef de mission for the Games. "I couldn't get (the gold medal), but I hope

Malaysian athletes can get one gold for Malaysia — that will also be my dream," Lee said.

Lee holds 69 singles titles but success at major championships has eluded him and he has

often come up short against his arch-nemesis, China's Lin Dan. Their rivalry, though

lopsided, is widely considered the greatest in the game. Lin leads 27-12 in their head-to-
head encounters, defeating Lee twice each at the Olympics and the world championship

finals. At Rio in 2016, the Malaysian lost out to China's Chen Long in a nail-biting final.

Lee was issued an eight-month backdated ban in 2015 for a doping violation and was

stripped of his silver medal from the 2014 World finals, a period he described as "the

toughest memories of his life".

Lee said he was looking forward to life post-retirement and planned to take his wife, who he

wed in 2012, on a long-overdue honeymoon."My career is like a rollercoaster, up-and-down,"

the father of two said. "I think this is the time for me to take a rest, take my wife for a

holiday."
The Edge Inspiring Young Leaders Awards

2017: DATUK NICOL ANN DAVID —

Sportswoman + squash icon

Her achievements need no dressing up — eight times world champion, nine times Asian

champion and a record 108 consecutive months as world No 1 in a 17-year professional

career that can only be described as phenomenal — but for Datuk Nicol Ann David, breaking

records is simply a result of two decades spent pushing the ceiling of women’s squash, or for

that matter, women in sport overall. It has always been said that the 33-year-old Penangite is

not getting the recognition she deserves. Alas, Nicol’s triumphs have also been marked by a

long, gritty and often lonely journey. But, displaying the mental fortitude that has taken her to

the very top of the world’s stage, the soft-spoken sportswoman has learnt to trust the

process. She hasn’t always felt this way, though. Having hit a wall two years ago, around the

time she slipped from the top rank after a career-high year in 2014, she muses, “I didn’t lose

passion, but I felt unsure how to approach the next phase of my life. Staying motivated

comes naturally to me — if I have to do something, I’ll do it. But I realised along the way I

was missing the purpose of what I am doing. I had to go deeper and to take stock of what

had happened in my life and career ... to understand and assess where to go from there and

what I needed to do differently in this fast-changing sport.”

Nevertheless, she says, she found a sense of equilibrium around the end of last year. “I’ve

come to this place where I found peace, and I know I’ve got a lot more to offer. I know what

I’m capable of — to be able to take what’s in front of me and to keep pushing my limits to

reach my full potential. Physically, I am still healthy, my body is still fit and strong, and

mentally, I am feeling so much more whole — like a full circle — where I can trust my

experience to take over. Now it’s about tweaking and working on evolving my game.”

Currently ranked sixth in the world and keeping a tight rein on the longest top 10 ranking for

both men’s and women’s squash, Nicol is preparing for the year ahead. She has been laying
the groundwork while back home for next year’s Commonwealth Games and Asian

Games.“I’m really excited. Every four years it’s always a big year for Malaysia. But I’m

mainly back this time for the doubles training for the world championships in August [in

Manchester]. I’m partnering Rachel Arnold,” she says.When the inevitable topic of retirement

arises, the squash queen says she is already planning ahead — and it involves an academy

as well as a foundation that will focus on creating opportunities for young Malaysians to play

squash and build confidence.“We especially want to reach the girls,” she says. “Malaysia will

definitely be the focus, although I have a lot of things on the list, like doing art and design,

my work with the UN as a goodwill ambassador. Also, I basically want to do every extreme

sport possible, all the things that I can’t do now at the risk of breaking something. Maybe I’ll

announce my retirement while jumping out of a plane.”

On a more serious note, Nicol acknowledges the accolade of being seen as an inspiring

young leader and her recent honour by The Edge as an awardee. Embracing her position as

a role model with a sense of burden, she says, “I hope I can reach out to more young people

and give them that confidence and belief that they also have something they can pursue and

fulfil because my dreams came through.”It’s not mere talk either as in May, the athlete made

it a point to compete in the nationals to support the next generation of players coming

through.While Nicol hopes to see Malaysian players rise on the world stage, she will be the

first to say it cannot be forced. “I don’t think we can speed up the process. What happened

to me is not the norm; it hasn’t actually happened in any country in the world, whether in

squash or any sport. I don’t think we can create or copy another ‘Nicol’; that’s the perception

we have to change. Because we want to create another athlete that is a version of her own,

that can reach her full potential ... who knows? We may have someone even better. I think

we have to change our mindset and just let them have fun ... they will get there in their own

time,” Nicol says.That said, if there is one piece of advice she has for young people, it is to

be willing to get out of the comfort zone and seek out environments where they can grow, to

take all the experiences that come their way from people who are willing to give them. And

when they do succeed, she would be happy to share the advice she gave herself:

“Remember to savour the moments a little bit more.”

 A) Fill in the blanks with the correct forms of the given nouns for the
following exercise. Use each noun only one time. 

chair job experience information hair

luggage progress furniture permission work

1. I don't have much  . Just two small bags. 

2. They are going to tell you all you want to know. They are going to 

give you a lot of  . 

3. There is room for everybody to sit down. There are a lot of  . 

4. We have no  , not even a bed or a table. 

5. 'What does Alan look like?' He's got a long beard and very short 

. 

6. Carla's English is very bad. She must make  . 

7. George is unemployed. He's looking for a  . 

8. If you want to leave work early, you have to ask for  . 

9. I don't think Ann will get the job. She hasn't got enough  . 

10. Shakespeare’s   are wonderful.

Choose whether the following nouns are countable or uncountable.

If you are not familiar with countable and uncountable nouns

see count/non-count or nouns lessons.

1. Coffee         11. News        

2. Tea         12. Watch        

3. Boy         13. Cheese        

4. Soap         14. House        

5. Table         15. Butter        

6. Car         16. Ball        

7. Honey         17. Toothpaste        

8. Keyboard         18. Rice        

9. Furniture         19. Mouse        

10. Smoke 20. Door

       
Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the
verb to be (present tense).

1. Tony    not a friendly person.

2. Kim and Kate   in the same class.

3. My mother's red dress   so beautiful.

4. I   a teacher at a high school.

5. Your new manager   from Germany.

6.    this your backpack?

7. Mr. Anderson's children   really smart.

8. All my friends   bold.

9. Our neighbor   very kind.

10. Jane's math class    very challenging.

11. His uncle  very rich.

12.   they your best friends?

13. Jessica and Daniel    not married.

14. Helen's friend Kathie    my boss.

15. I    not your friend any more.

Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the
verb is, am and are (present tense).

1. Children    playing outside.

2. The news    very saddening.

3. Benny and Mike    meeting tomorrow.

4. I    very hopeful of the future.

5. Juan's parents   very fond of him.

6.   these your glasses?

7. Mr. and Mrs. Wallace   living the dream.

8. My friends and I   going out after dinner.

9. My friends don't know what I   going to do.

10. My history book   very informative.

11. I can't believe I   graduating next week.

12.   they Joe and Frank ?

13. The holiday season    coming.

14. Douglas     the boss.

15. Those cars and the train    my favorite toys.

A) Complete the following exercise with  adverb form of the words.

1. That pitbull looks  . (angry) 

2. She spoke  . (quiet) 

3. Erica listened to her mother  . (careful) 

4. Mary makes   mistakes. (careless) 

5. Children grow   (quick) 

6. He is very   today. (happy) 

7. It's raining  . (heavy) 

8. Morgan was   hurt in a car accident. (serious) 

9. His situation was very  . (serious) 

1. Complete each sentence using the words from the table in the
correct adverb form. 

carefu
complete continuous financial fluent
l

happy nervous perfect quick special

quickly
1. Our holiday was too short. The time passed very  .

2. Tom doesn't take risks when he's driving. He's always  .

3. Sally works  . She never seems to stop.

4. Alice and Stan are very   married.

5. Monica's English is very   although she makes a lot of

mistakes.

6. I cooked this meal   for you, so I hope you like it.

7. Everything was very quiet. There was   silence.

8. I tried on the shoes and they fitted me  .

9. Do you usually feel   before examinations?

10. I'd like to buy a car but it's   impossible for me at the

moment.
1. Complete the sentences with adjective form of the given words. 

1. He would whisper   not to disturb others in the room.

2. I worked so   to get this job.

3. Our new neighbor is a very  person.

4. When I woke up, the sun was shining  , and the birds were

singing happily.

5. Driving   can be very dangerous.

6. Our teacher treats us very  .

7. My wife always smiles  .

8.   driver stopped suddenly.

9. Our new couch is very   .

10. The policeman gave him a ticket because he didn't park   .

2. Choose the adjective form of the word.

1. The driver of the car was         injured.

2. The driver of the car had         injuries.

3. I think you behaved very        .

4. Rose is         upset about losing her job.

5. There was a         change in the weather.

6. Everybody at the party was         dressed.

7. Linda likes wearing         clothes.

8. She fell and hurt herself quite        .

9. Don't go up that ladder. It doesn't look        .

10. He looked at me         when I interrupted him.

A) Complete the exercise with appropriate prepositions. 

1. Nice   meet you.

2. Don’t be late   school. 

3. Are you the new student   Portugal? 

4. Are you a teacher   this school? 

5-6. Jessica is   vacation. She is   Italy now. 

7. What is this called   English? 

8. Look   the flowers. 

9. Adam's birthday is   July. 

10. Don’t run   the classroom. 

B) Fill in the blanks with appropriate prepositions. 

1. Compare your answers   your partner. 

2. This key holder is very special   me. 

3. Apples and peaches are   the same box. 

4. Write   me soon. 

5. Have you got a piece   paper? 

6. What’s the calculator for? It is   my exam. 

7. I’m tall   black hair and brown eyes. 

8. We have a house   a big backyard. 

9. I come   a big family. 

10. Match the pictures   the names. 

11. Is your house   the country? 

12. Guess what I have   my hand? 

13. I have two color pens. What   you?