Source: REUTERS/Darley Shen
[Saba Sports News] In recent days, rumors about the deaths of badminton legends Taufik Hidayat and Lee Chong Wei have sparked concern among fans. On October 6, a social media account falsely claimed that Taufik had passed away. However, Taufik’s official account posted photos of him traveling with his family a few hours later, debunking the rumor and forcing the account to delete the post and apologize. On October 11, a Facebook screenshot circulated claiming that 40-year-old Lee Chong Wei had died. Upon investigation, it was found that this screenshot had been circulating since last year when news reported the sudden death of former Malaysian badminton player Gan Teik Chai on August 4, 2023, at the age of 40. Lee Chong Wei was seen crying at Gan’s funeral. Somehow, this got twisted into a rumor about Lee Chong Wei’s death. Furthermore, Lee Chong Wei, born in 1982, is actually 42 years old this year, which makes the rumor easily disprovable. Taufik is noted as the first male singles player in badminton history to achieve a Grand Slam by winning Olympic, Asian Games, World Championships, and Thomas Cup titles. He retired in 2013 and now runs his own gym while serving as an advisor for the Indonesian national badminton team. Lee Chong Wei held the world number one ranking for an extended period and won three Olympic silver medals and four World Championship silver medals, earning him the title of “unofficial king” before retiring in tears due to nasal cancer in 2019.