Lee eyes Olympics after Malaysia badminton win
World number one Lee Chong Wei equalled a badminton legend's record of eight Malaysia Open titles on Sunday, trouncing his opponent in the final and declaring he had his sights set on Olympic gold. The Malaysian emulated compatriot Wong Peng Soonâs record of winning eight menâs singles titles with a comprehensive 21-6, 21-13 victory over Japanâs Kenichi Tago. "It feels great to have equalled a legendâs record and now I have set my sights on winning the countryâs first Olympic gold medal," said Lee, who was a runner-up at the Beijing Olympics four years ago. Leeâs previous Malaysia Open titles came in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010 and last year while Wongâs eight wins were in 1940, 1941, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952 and 1953. "I will now cut down my commitments and focus on the Olympics. For sure I will play in the Thomas Cup and the All England as they are the very important tournaments to me and the country," he added. "The win is a good Chinese New Year present for me and I will now enjoy a short break with my family before resuming training." Asked if he will now seek to break Wongâs record, Lee said "it would be nice to get nine titles but for now, the focus is on the Olympics." The Malaysian was streets ahead of Tago, who struggled with Leeâs pace and shot selection. The Japanese shuttler also appeared intimidated by the capacity crowd who rocked the Putra Stadium for hours before the match. Meanwhile, Denmarkâs Christinna Pedersen-Kamilla Rytter-Juhl captured their first Superseries title together when they defeated South Koreaâs Ha Jung-Eun/Kim Min-Jung 21-19, 21-18 in a keenly contested match-up. The Danes, who are accomplished mixed doubles players, will move up the world rankings after this win and give a boost to their hopes of qualifying for the Olympics. In the menâs doubles, Taipeiâs Fang Chieh-Min/Lee Sheng-Mu defeated South Koreaâs Cho Gun-Woo/Shin Baek-Choel (KOR) 16-21, 21-16, 21-16 to win the third Superseries title of their careers but their first in almost two years. World champions Wang Yihan and Zhang Nan-Zhao Yunlei won the womenâs singles and doubles titles. Wang, who lost in the final last year, defeated teammate Wang Xin in straight sets, 21-19, 21-11. "It is good to finally win my first title in Malaysia," she said.