Lee Zii Jia: A recap of his top 5 title victories
August 6, 2024 15:53 MYT
Lee Zii Jia became only the third Malaysian men’s singles shuttler after Rashid Sidek and Lee Chong Wei to win an Olympic medal since the sport officially made its debut at the world’s biggest sporting event in 1992With that, StadiumAstro recaps some of Lee’s biggest achievements throughout his career so far.
2024 Paris Olympics
Coming into his second Olympics, Lee was determined to go all the way, having lost in the last-16 against Chen Long at the Tokyo Olympics.
The seventh seed comfortably cleared his group by defeating Viren Nettasinghe and Pablo Abian in the group stage, and repeated the trick in the quarter-finals by dominating Anders Antonsen.
Kunlavut Vitidsarn was simply in a different class to outclass him in the semi-finals, but Lee recovered gamely to return with a mission to claim bronze against Lakshya Sen.
He did so in some style in the second and third game with an all conquering performance against the Indian who had no answer to his attacking prowess.
2024 Australian Open
The world number seven came into this competition a month before the Paris Olympics needing one final confidence booster.
He achieved it in fine fashion, beating the higher ranked Kodai Naraoka in three epic games to clinch his second title of the year, having won the Thailand Open a month earlier.
2022 Asian Championships
This was Lee’s first title after leaving the national association and it showcased his determination to elevate his career as a professional shuttler.
Under the guidance of his former coach Indra Wijaya, Lee picked apart all his opponents in straight games and capped a glorious outing by defeating Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie in straight games.
2021 All England
2021 was the year Lee proved himself as a world class shuttler capable of challenging for honours at the highest level after he won this prestigious event.
Having lost in the semi-finals a year earlier, the Malaysian went the distance after he dethroned defending champion Viktor Axelsen in three epic games in the final.
2019 SEA Games
Only 21 then, Lee was making a name for himself on the world stage and arrived at the SEA Games as one of the medal contenders.
The Kedah-born went on to clinch gold after defeating former junior team-mate Loh Kean Yew in an impressive straight game victory to ensure a successful campaign for the national contingent.