"I couldn't stop him," even Japan's ace admitted Yoo Tae-bin's surge... World No. 46 topples Chinese and Japanese powerhouses to claim a precious bronze medal [Aichi Nagoya AG]

*This content was translated by AI.

It was an uprising by the world No. 46.

South Korea's badminton men's singles newcomer Yoo Tae-bin (Gimcheon City Hall) defeated top-ranked players from China and Japan in succession to win a valuable bronze medal at the Asian Games.

On the 28th, Yoo lost to Singapore's Loh Kean Yew (world No. 13) 1-2 (19-21, 21-19, 12-21) in the men's singles semifinal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at Ichinomiya Municipal Gymnasium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Although he failed to reach the final, he did not give up easily.

The first game was tightly contested. Yoo fought Loh Kean Yew until the very end but narrowly lost the opening game 19-21.

The second game also saw a fierce battle. Yoo initially trailed but gradually closed the gap, tied the score at 19-19 late in the game, then scored two consecutive points to win 21-19, forcing the match into a deciding third game.

However, he could not halt Loh Kean Yew's momentum in the final game. The gap widened from the start, and Yoo ultimately lost 12-21.

Although he stopped just short of the final, Yoo's performance in this tournament was a major upset in itself.

In this year's badminton event, no bronze medal match is held; all players who lose in the semifinals are awarded bronze medals. Yoo, ranked world No. 46, claimed the men's singles bronze at this tournament.

This marks South Korea's first Asian Games men's singles medal since Park Sung-hwan won bronze at the 2010 Guangzhou Games — a span of 16 years.

The journey to the medal was even more intense. In the round of 32, Yoo defeated Taiwan's Lin Chun-yi (world No. 11) with a decisive 2-0 victory (21-10, 21-12).

Next, in the round of 16, he completely overpowered China's top player Shi Yuqi, who once reached world No. 1, winning 2-0 (21-17, 25-23).

In the quarterfinals, he even defeated Japan's star Kodai Naraoka (world No. 7) 2-1, causing a surprise by advancing to the semifinals.

After the match, Naraoka also acknowledged Yoo's skill.

According to Japanese media outlet "Badminton Spirit," Naraoka said, "My opponent was strong. At the start of the match, I felt he was slow and thought, 'I can handle this if it continues like this.' But from the second game on, he became incredibly fast. I had watched his videos beforehand, but today he was simply too fast to stop."

He further emphasized, "I felt his playing style was different from other top-ranked players."

He did not blame his own poor form for the loss.

Naraoka stated, "My own play wasn't bad at all. If this were an ordinary tournament, I believe I could have won such a match. It was simply that my opponent performed exceptionally well."

The Japanese ace, who has long maintained a top-world ranking, fully recognized Yoo's performance.

Singaporean media outlet Lianhe Zaobao also reported on the day of Loh Kean Yew's advancement to the final, introducing Yoo as "Korea's dark horse."

The media highlighted Yoo's surge in this tournament, noting he is "the player who eliminated China's powerhouse Shi Yuqi and Japan's Kodai Naraoka."

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.