Published: 16:20, January 2, 2025 | Updated: 17:02, January 2, 2025
Olympic badminton champion Huang to retire from Chinese national team
By Xinhua
Zheng Siwei / Huang Yaqiong (left) compete during the mixed doubles final match between Zheng Siwei / Huang Yaqiong of China and Chen Tang Jie / Toh Ee Wei of Malaysia at BWF World Tour Finals 2024 in Hangzhou, China, Dec 15, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA) 

BEIJING - Badminton Olympic champion Huang Yaqiong announced on social media Wednesday that she has submitted her resignation to the Chinese national team and officially bid farewell to her national team career.

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"I've been greeted with countless encouragements from everyone, hoping that I could continue my career. But actually, since the run-up for the Paris Olympics, I've already regarded the Paris Olympics as my last one," Huang wrote.

Winners Zheng Siwei (right) / Huang Yaqiong pose during the awarding ceremony for the mixed doubles event at BWF World Tour Finals 2024 in Hangzhou, China, Dec 15, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

"Although based on my current form, I still possess the physical ability to compete, the accumulated injuries over the years combined with the increasing age have made me lack of confidence to continue shouldering the mission of winning glory for the country and maintaining the form as an elite athlete."

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After finishing runners-up at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, Huang and her partner Zheng Siwei won mixed doubles gold at the Paris Olympics, finishing the tournament with a 6-0 record without dropping a set in the process.

Gold medalists Zheng Siwei (left) / Huang Yaqiong of China show their medals during the victory ceremony for the badminton mixed doubles at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, Aug 2, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

Zheng also announced last November that he would retire from international competition. In their last international competition, the duo won the championship for the third consecutive time at the year-end Badminton World Federation (BWF) world tour finals just last month.

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Huang said that although she has left the national team, her bond with badminton remains unbroken. She will still contribute to the sport in her own way. "Badminton is my lifelong pursuit, and I'm willing to give it my all," she said.

Liu Yuchen (right) presents a ring to Chinese badminton player Huang Yaqiong during an improvised proposal after Huang won her first Olympic gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, Aug 2, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
Huang Yaqiong (left) / Zheng Siwei of China return the shuttlecock to Watanabe Yuta / Higashino Arisa of Japan during the mixed doubles semifinal of badminton at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, Aug 1, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA) 
Zheng Siwei / Huang Yaqiong (left) compete in the mixed doubles final match between Zheng Siwei / Huang Yaqiong of China and Yang Po-Hsuan / Hu Ling Fang of Chinese Taipei at the Singapore Badminton Open 2024 in Singapore, June 2, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
Huang Yaqiong (left) / Zheng Siwei greet spectators after winning the mixed doubles final match between Zheng Siwei / Huang Yaqiong of China and Chen Tang Jie / Toh Ee Wei of Malaysia at BWF World Tour Finals 2024 in Hangzhou, China, Dec 15, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA)