Loh Kean Yew is first S’porean to reach Asian Games badminton final, one win from gold

Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in action against South Korea’s Yoo Tae-Bin during the Asian Games badminton men’s singles semi-final at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Sept 28.

ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

Published Sep 28, 2026, 02:04 PM

Updated Sep 28, 2026, 02:48 PM

NAGOYA – Loh Kean Yew’s historic run at the Asian Games continues , as he became the first Singaporean to make a badminton final at the event after beating South Korea’s Yoo Tae-bin 21-19, 19-21, 21-12 in the men’s singles semi-finals on Sept 28.

The 29-year-old will next face Thailand’s world No. 2 Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who beat Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan 21-13, 21-15, at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Sept 29.

Earlier in the competition, Loh had beaten India’s eighth seed and world No. 14 Lakshya Sen, Malaysia’s 48th-ranked Justin Hoh, and Indonesia’s world No. 1 Jonatan Christie.

Against 1.86m Yoo, who has an 11cm height advantage but was ranked outside the top 100 as recently as September 2025, he could not afford to be complacent. His giant-killing opponent, who is ranked world No. 46, had accounted for Taiwanese Lin Chun-yi (No. 11), China’s world Shi Yuqi (No. 6) and Japan’s Kodai Naraoka (No. 7) in the earlier rounds.

Loh was patient as he searched for openings to counter his opponent’s booming smashes and impressive saves to prevail and secure at least a silver medal.

At his Asiad debut in China three years ago, he went home with no wins and two defeats in the men’s singles and team events.

The only time Team Singapore stood on an Asian Games badminton podium was when the women’s team won bronze in 2006.

In the women’s singles, South Korea’s defending champion and world No. 1 An Se-young continued her seemingly unstoppable run on Sept 28, when she beat China’s fourth-ranked Chen Yufei 21-5, 21-12 for her 55th win in 56 matches – 48 of them in straight games – in 2026.

In the Sept 29 final, the 24-year-old will meet Japan’s world No. 3 Akane Yamaguchi, who beat China’s second-ranked Wang Zhiyi 21-11, 22-20 in the other semi-final.

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David Lee is senior sports correspondent at The Straits Times, focusing on aquatics, badminton, basketball, cue sports, football and table tennis.

9月28日，在市宫市体育馆举行的亚运会羽毛球男单半决赛中，新加坡选手罗建耀对阵韩国选手柳泰彬。

《海峡时报》照片：张马克

发布于 2026 年 9 月 28 日下午 2:04

更新于2026年9月28日下午2:48

名古屋——罗建耀在亚运会上的历史性征程仍在继续，9月28日，他在男单半决赛中以21-19、19-21、21-12击败韩国选手柳泰彬，成为首位晋级亚运会羽毛球决赛的新加坡选手。

这位 29 岁的选手接下来将迎战世界排名第 2 的泰国选手昆拉武特·维提德萨恩，后者在 9 月 29 日于一宫市体育馆以 21-13、21-15 击败了印度尼西亚选手阿尔维·法尔汉。

在之前的比赛中，罗赫曾击败印度八号种子、世界排名第 14 的拉克什亚·森，马来西亚排名第 48 的贾斯汀·霍，以及印度尼西亚世界排名第一的乔纳坦·克里斯蒂。

面对身高1.86米、比他高出11厘米的柳承敏，他绝不能掉以轻心。柳承敏在2025年9月时排名还在百名开外。这位“巨人杀手”目前世界排名第46位，此前曾击败过排名第11的中华台北选手林纯一、排名第6的中国选手石宇奇以及排名第7的日本选手奈良冈幸大。

罗赫耐心寻找机会，反击对手势大力沉的扣杀和精彩的救球，最终获胜，至少获得一枚银牌。

三年前他首次参加在中国举行的亚运会，结果在男子单打和团体赛中均未取得胜利，反而输了两场。

新加坡队唯一一次登上亚运会羽毛球领奖台是在2006年，当时女子队获得了铜牌。

在女子单打比赛中，韩国卫冕冠军、世界排名第一的安世荣在9月28日继续着她势不可挡的连胜势头，以21-5、21-12击败了中国排名第四的陈雨菲，取得了她在2026年56场比赛中的55场胜利——其中48场是直落两局获胜。

在 9 月 29 日的决赛中，这位 24 岁的选手将迎战世界排名第 3 的日本选手山口茜，后者在另一场半决赛中以 21-11、22-20 击败了排名第二的中国选手王志毅。

通过《海峡时报》的每周新闻简报，深入了解新加坡的所有体育赛事和趋势。

David Lee 是《海峡时报》的资深体育记者，主要报道水上运动、羽毛球、篮球、台球、足球和乒乓球。