Youth Olympic champ Malhan trained at Lee Chong Wei Academy, played vs Momota

Riyan Malhan, who has made history by becoming the first Youth Olympics gold medalist from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has previously trained with the Lee Chong Wei Academy and played against Kento Momota.

Malhan beat top seeded Mady Sow of France 21-17, 21-18 in the final on Thursday, and showed great sportsmanship by going over to his crestfallen opponent to give him a hug.

Stadium Astro uncovers three key things about the 16-year-old prodigy.

Born to Indian parents, coached by his father

Malhan was born and raised in the UAE to Indian parents who hail from New Delhi.

The teenager actually represented India early in his career, but UAE swooped in for his services in 2021.

Like many badminton stars, Malhan picked up badminton from his father Vipul Malhan when he was four or five.

Ironically, Malhan’s Dad had dreams of becoming a professional shuttler.

Now Malhan senior gets to live his dream through his son.

Trained at Lee Chong Wei Academy

Malhan had several training stints at the Lee Chong Wei Academy between 2024 and this year.

"For a badminton player, training around the world is the best. To get many new friends, have new exposure and of course not playing with the same players but different players.

"It's been a great opportunity for me, especially these past two years. I've trained under the Lee Chong Wei Academy,” Malhan told Olympics.com.

Malhan has also trained with two other popular academies at the Prakash Padukone Academy and the Gopichand Academy.

Played against Kento Momota this year

Besides beating all his junior opponents to win the Youth Olympics gold medal in straight games, Malhan also had the privilege to play against two-time world champion Kento Momota.

This unique match-up took place at the Shanghai Open quarter-finals in July, where both shuttlers played only one game comprising 31-points.

Malhan started off on fire and raced to a 17-8 lead, and looked poised to win the game as he closed in at 23-16.

But Momota rallied late on to win 31-25, giving Malhan a memorable experience that would set him up nicely to clinch gold in Dakar, Senegal.