THE WORLD number 3 and second seed, Wang Yihan, from China proved too strong for Raphoe’s Chloe Magee this afternoon at the Olympic Games.
The Donegal woman, who put up a brave display, lost out 21-7, 21-12 to Wang, one of the top tips for a medal at these Games.
Wang took control from early in the match and scored a straight sets win with a clinical and ruthless performance at the Riocentro, although Magee will certainly take confidence from the way she battled in the second set.
Wang dominated the opening exchanges hitting nine points in a row after a nervous-looking Magee had taken the first point of the game.
Magee stemmed the flow by pegging it back to a 9-2 game, but the Raphoe woman was always up against it against one of the gold medal hopefuls in the women’s singles.
Magee challenged one decision to get a point that made it 14-5 in the first set.
The talents of Wang were obvious coming into the Games.
This, after all, was the silver medallist at the 2012 Olympics, where she only lost to Li Xuerui after three sets – 21-15, 21-23, 21-17 – of a closely-fought final.
Wang – the winner of the Badminton World Cup in 2006 and the World Championship victor in 2011 – brought the hurt from that final defeat at the Wembley Arena to Rio.
Magee was handed one of the toughest draws possible at what is her third Olympic Games, but was still was able to show at times here why she regards herself as belonging on this stage.
[adrotate group=”76″]While Wang punished her every mistake, however miniscule, in the first game, Magee began well in the second game and led 4-1 only for a slight misjudgement to see Wang drop the shuttle just inside the boundary to begin the charge again.
Wang hit eight points in a row and, after a neat return-of-serve by Magee, the Chinese player, hit another seven in succession.
Magee never lost her courage or that never-say-die attitude that has marked out her career and she made a real fist of the second set, although Wang had victoy in her sights by the time Magee was showing real improvement.
[adrotate group=”81″]Qualification was far from straightforward for Magee, who only sealed her place in Rio back in April when, at the European Badminton Championships at La Roche sur Yon in France, wins over Chloe Birch and Telma Santos took her into one of the final qualifying places in the rankings.
This was Magee’s fifth game at an Olympic Games with the Raphoe ace having won her opening games at the 2008 and 2012 Games, defeating Estonia’s Kati Tolmoff 18-21, 21-18, 21-19 and Egyptian. Hadia Hosny 21-17, 21-6.
While Wang had too much here, Magee has another group game left.
At 1am Irish time on Saturday, she faces Germany’s Karin Schnaase.
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