RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Carolina Marin of Spain beat P.V. Sindhu of India on Friday to take gold in women's singles badminton, a victory that signals a clear end to China's previous lock on the sport.
Marin, the world No. 1 and heavy favorite ahead of the Rio Games, fell face first on the court, then kneeled and wept after her hard-fought 2-1 victory. Marin beat Li Xuerui, the defending Olympic champion from China, to get to the gold medal match.
Earlier in men's singles Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia overcame two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan of China to advance to the finals against a younger Chinese star, Chen Long.