The world of sports cannot be separated from various cases and scandals. Badminton is not an exception. There has been several scandals recorded, including cases of infidelity committed by world-famous badminton athletes. Here are some of badminton athletes affected by cases and scandals that have shocked the world:
Lee Chong Wei
Starting with a case that happened to the man’s singles player from Malaysia. Occurred in 2014, badminton lovers were in an uproar with a doping case involving Lee Chong Wei. The 2016 Rio Olympics silver medalist did not pass the doping test to take part in the 2014 world championships in Denmark.
Lee Chong Wei’s urine test tested positive for dexamethasone which is banned by the BWF (Badminton World Federation). He admitted that he consumed the substance while undergoing treatment for the thigh injury he experienced. As a result of this case, the BWF imposed a ban from competing for 8 months and the silver medal at the 2014 world championships won by Lee Chong Wei was finally revoked.
Lin Dan
The next scandal happened to one of the best men’s singles players from the PRC, Lin Dan. The 2012 London Olympics gold medalist caused an uproar by badminton lovers because of the affair scandal with a beautiful model named Zhao Yaqi. It happened when his wife was pregnant.
This affair scandal began to reveal to the public when Lin Dan and Zhao Yaqi were caught by CCTV cameras making out together in 2016. Their photos finally spread on social media. As a result of the affair scandal, Lin Dan received a lot of criticism from the public which made Lin Dan have to admit his mistake and apologize to his wife. Thanks to the generosity of his wife Xie Xingfang, she forgave her husband after giving birth to their first child.
Kento Momota
The current number 1 badminton player in the world has several times of cases and scandals that befell him. In 2016, Kento Momota was caught gambling illegally in Tokyo with his teammate Kenichi Tago. As a result of his actions, Kento Momota was sentenced to be prohibited from participating in the 2016 Rio Olympics and was banned from competing until the end of 2017.
In the same year, Kento Momota was caught again making out with a female entertainer at a karaoke. The photo was widely circulated on social media. It didn’t stop there. The player who managed to win the world title was once caught in the same room as his fellow badminton specialist, Yuki Fukushima. This is known from the CCTV camera footage that shows Yuki leaving Kento Momota’s dorm room. However, Kento Momota defended and admitted that he only chatted with Yuki Fukushima and finally both of them were freed from punishment.
Zhang Nan & Zhao Yunlei
The affair scandal also hit China’s best mixed doubles pair, Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei. In addition to pairing up as mixed doubles players, the two of them have an affair off the field. This pair instantly becomes idols because success goes hand in hand with their achievements.
Zhang Nan reportedly had an affair with Tian Qing who was none other than Zhao Yunlei’s duet partner in the women’s doubles category. As a result, the performance of both of them dropped very sharply as seen in the Rio Olympics. They were only able to win a bronze medal. After the 2016 Rio Olympics, Zhao Yunlei finally decided to hang up his racket.
2 years ago, the public was in an uproar with the news that Zhao Yunlei was getting married to Hong Wei, who is none other than China’s national badminton partner. Uniquely, shortly after the news of his former lover’s marriage, Zhang Nan also officially married Tian Qing.
Jonatan Christie
In 2019, the Indonesian badminton world was shocked by the upload of a masturbation video allegedly carried out by the Indonesian badminton national team athlete, Jonathan Christie. The video was widely circulated and viral on Twitter. Netizens suddenly suspected that the actor of the video was Jonathan Christie.
However, Jonathan Christie’s family member strongly denied that the actor in the video was Jojo. The indecent video has been circulating for a long time and has returned to hits recently. Until now, it was not known whether it was Jonathan Christie or not.
