The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) has surprisingly named Cheam June Wei as Lee Chong Wei's replacement at the 2018 Asian Games.
The participation of the 21-year-old, who was chosen ahead of seniors Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin and Lim Chi Wing, was confirmed by BAM president Norza Zakaria on Thursday following Lee's withdrawal.
Cheam, who is currently 81st in the world and recently bagged his first senior title after defeating Poland's Adrian Dziolko at the Dutch International in April, will carry the country's challenge in the men's singles event alongside first-time debutants Lee Zii Jia, Leong Jun Hao and Soong Joo Ven.
"As we know, some names have been submitted and decided by the Coaching and Training Committee to be sent to the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) and we can name Cheam June Wei as a substitute.
"We will send his name and apply to the Indonesia Asian Games 2018 Organising Committee (INASGOC) to make the exchange as soon as possible. The nomination process has been closed, but there are exceptions to certain cases involving health problems," Norza was quoted saying by Bernama.
At the same time, he conceded that the absence of Lee had an impact on the medal target placed on the national badminton squad in Indonesia.
"In terms of medal targets, we had previously targeted three, but since Chong Wei could not be with us, the target was dropped to two medals, regardless of the colours," he added.
Meanwhile, Norza said the development of Lee's health would only be announced within three weeks to one month from now.
"I am always in touch with him and currently he is undergoing treatment, so it is best that we let him do so and give him an opportunity to spend time with his family," he said.
Seng Foo Lee
Thu Jul 26 2018
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