Source:Oriental Image/Zheng Hongliang
[Saba Sports News] Chinese women’s singles badminton player Gao Fangjie has announced on social media that she will officially retire after the Badminton Asia Championships. The 27-year-old Chinese shuttler, currently ranked 10th in the world in women’s singles, revealed that the Badminton Asia Championships to be held from the 7th to the 12th of this month will be the final match of her professional career.
When the Chinese national badminton team announced its squad for the Thomas & Uber Cup on March 30, Gao Fangjie’s name was absent, sparking widespread speculation that she was about to retire. A total of four Chinese women’s singles players will compete in the Uber Cup, namely Chen Yufei, Wang Zhiyi, Han Yue, and Gao Fangjie.
Records show that Gao Fangjie officially joined the Chinese National Badminton First Team in June 2014 and was a member of the 2018 Uber Cup champion squad. However, in January 2019, she suffered a torn left Achilles tendon at the Malaysia Masters, which kept her away from the international court for as long as three years. She made a full recovery and returned to competition in 2022, beginning her comeback on the international stage through challenge tournaments.
In the editor’s view, Gao Fangjie’s career embodies exceptional competitive potential and extraordinary resilience. Not only did she display the ability to challenge the world’s top players at her peak, but she also staged a near-legendary comeback after a career-threatening injury, becoming an inspiration to countless athletes. Her retirement marks the farewell of a fighter who endured hardships yet remained true to her original aspiration, and her legacy will live on in the sport of badminton.