I really don't know whether to feel happy or sad for him. While I've great respect for his tremendous willpower but does he even realise he'll be 36 next year and 37 at the Tokyo Olympics ? Even if he's motivated and prepared to work harder next year, can his body take it ? LCW's case is a bit different, he's never let up on his training and his self-motivation and dedication to chase that elusive gold is as high as ever, never wavering, except that this time round he has to contend with another problem, his health concerns despite it being early stage nose cancer and full remission for the time being. For Lin Dan , he actually has nothing more to prove so I guess he's doing this not only to make himself relevant and convince his sponsors of his continued popularity and marketing value (apart from possibly contractual obligations with Yonex's 10-year deal) but also I suspect he's being stubborn in being unwilling to concede defeat and admit that age has finally caught up with him and has decided to defy the ravages of age by fighting not so much against his adversaries but himself. In other words, it's become a battle against himself. Only he knows what he wants and whether it's worth it or not. Setting and breaking his own records seems to be his new goal and challenge in life. I believe he knows deep inside he has no realistic chance of medaling at the Tokyo Olympics even if he qualifies, let alone capture a third historic gold medal. Just being there at the Olympics competing for the fifth time is itself a dream come true. The million-dollar question is , can he oust either Shi Yuqi or Chen Long for one of the two Olympic spots, not to mention any of his other young teammates who might arise to push him out of contention in the race to Tokyo 2020. Personally, I feel that Rio'16 was actually his last and final chance to vie for at least a silver, bronze is considered a failure for him then and we now know why he flopped which has mostly to do with his celebrity lifestyle and personal affairs that distracted him. Aiming for Tokyo 2020 is a tall order for a 36 going 37 years old athlete during and by the end of the Olympic cycle next year and after as we're talking about such a physically demanding sport as badminton, not , say, table tennis where there are precedents of two 35-year-olds, Timo Boll and Bastian Steger capturing bronze in MD, and that in a team event at Rio'16, and the 35-year-old Jan Ove Waldner winning silver in MS at Sydney 2000 OG, and followed by a fourth place finish in MS at age 39 at the Athens 2004 OG, losing the bronze playoff. In conclusion, I see it as a case of , on the one hand, the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, but, on the other hand, mind over matter. Which is it for Lin Dan ? Let's wait and see.
LD is one year younger than LCW. Everybody's body is different so we can't compare LD's body to LCW's body. I am not on China's national team so I don't have direct knowledge of how LD is training. But personally, I doubt LD is training as hard as LCW was before LCW took a break because of his cancer. I am speculating of course, as probably all of us are.
We'll never know. But it's a little comfort for people who want to see him still dominate the scene, because it leaves the possibility that he could still dominate if he trained harder (or as hard as LCW does). Didn't LYB once say that LCW picked a very tough nemesis, because LD "trains like a maniac" and is "a possessed man"? That he was training in the gym an hour before his wedding? On the other hand the motivation and hunger point makes sense, too.
It's well-known that Lin Dan since resuming competition after his post-LOG'12 one-year break has cut down on his training regimen on grounds that he is emphasizing on quality rather than quantity and according to his age requirements. In fact it gotten so bad that Li Yongbo publicly chided Lin Dan after his humiliating loss to J O Jorgensen at the WC'2015 that he lacked the hunger to win and that he , LYB, intended to personally take over Lin Dan's physical training, that's telling as it thereby implied that it hadn't been adequate. But , later, nothing much was made of it for Lin Dan somehow still managed to get his way (I suspect he probably assured LYB he'd do something about it). As we know, Lin Dan always have his personal trainer paid out of his own pockets during his one-year hiatus and thereafter for quite some time. I'm not sure if he is still doing so now. If he is , then don't suppose his personal trainer would dare push his boss too hard at training. Now that LYB is gone and Xia Xuanze had taken over as Head Coach for Singles almost two years ago, I've even less reason to believe XXZ would come down hard on Lin Dan - it's just not XXZ's character and , besides, he must have realised he cannot depend on the aging Lin Dan too much and, apparently, has been devoting more time and effort on Chen Long and the younger cohort of players; indeed, wise of him as befitting a Head Coach who has to look at the big picture and make long-term plans ahead. To make matters worse, Lin Dan's motivation to win tournaments other than the majors is never high in the first place these few years. So , how is it likely or possible for one who is accustomed to a comfortable level of training at normal times to suddenly step up considerably in preparation for the majors, esp for a player who has won it all and past 30 years of age, is somewhat beyond my understanding. That, in addition to his extra-curricular activities, commercial activities, celebrity lifestyle and other private affairs, interests, pastimes (remember his Masked Singing contest ?), can only make matters worse, not better. I mean, claiming to have the motivation to win is one thing but actually putting in the hard work needed is another. In other words, talk is cheap if not translated into concrete action that ultimately produced results. Therefore, I believed, if Lin Dan is really serious about giving one last shot at the Tokyo Olympics by qualifying for it starting next year, it will take nothing less than leading a spartan life of diligent, even rigorous , training and discipline, totally focused and dedicated to badminton for that one over year until the Olympics proper, including a hectic tournament schedule, nothing less. Can he, will he , do it ? I'm not sure at this moment until I start to see some convincing results from him next year. Whatever we say now can only be pure speculation. To be honest, I'm more inclined to believe LCW than Lin Dan on their Tokyo 2020 goals. But one thing for sure, no matter how he trains, there is only so far he can go and so much he can achieve with respect to his age factor, which means, he can never compete with any of his much younger rivals on physicality. But as long as he improves and maximises on his physical condition significantly subject to his age limitation, whatever he lacks in physicality can be made up for in other vital aspects, viz. technical skills, knowledge and understanding of the game and experience of the highest order of magnitude and based on his prodigious talents. Well, we'll see how it goes, all in good time.
What I found really interesting about LD's match against Momota in HK recently was the fact that he had the right strategy to beat him and very nearly done so. At first I thought that KM was having a bad day or he wasn't really trying but it was actually LD that was controlling most of the rallies. He lost largely due to his fitness which for me has nothing to do with his age. He's not 50! If you watch the match carefully and look at LD's movement and notice how slow he is accelerating compared to KM, it really begs the question that if he was able to up his speed by even a very small amount, it would probably be enough to beat KM particularly given how hard KM already had to work. LD was moving him around so much it completely drained him but also the perfect lifts left him with very few opportunities to smash. LD is still incredibly good at hiding his intentions on court with every lift and overhead shot. This small delay was enough to prevent KM from smashing at the rear court - as he couldn't quite get into position in time and on balance. And because KM is a player that anticipates and commits a lot when he feels he can read his opponent. He had to work extremely hard in covering more corners against LD and what seems like a larger court. LD's numerous unforced errors serves to confirm his lack of form which you'd be hard pushed to see in his heyday. The other interesting thing about this match was how KM was struggling to get back LD's infrequent smashes. He had no idea where they were going - he just couldn't read them, despite being slower than other players. A lot of his smashes were actually well within reach of KM. It was actually a relatively good performance from LD and you have to wonder that if he can just improve his speed, stamina and defense, I have no doubt he can still beat the best in world.
How far should we let such posts go? If there was a disclaimer that it’s a hoax, that’s ok. But there is no such statement to tell somebody who is unfamiliar (or even familiar) with the forum that it’s a hoax. @Nine Tailed Fox
I have a feeling that not only is KM tired after weeks of going deep into many tournaments, but he may be conserving energy (ie using just enough to win each match) prior to the finals day. We'll see in a few hours how he plays against JC. Sent from my SM-G965W using Tapatalk
Hello, thanks for asking me to clarify this. I don't know why this particular user @yuquall is repeatedly crying Wolf over post Number 11336 when I have already posted two links below the write-up as an evidence for LD's words. It's just that I have presented it in a more amusing way for the common folks to understand clearly what is going on inside LD's head. The answers are LD's own words but the questions are the exact psychological challenges that awaits LD who wants each and every one of us to understand it through his answers.
Well said, my sentiments exactly. Yes, Lin Dan still has the game to take on Momota but just not the fitness and stamina which limits his attacking ability considerably, no finishing power to kill off the rally, a far cry from his younger days. It's a million-dollar question indeed whether he can work on his physicality, just improve by 10% may be enough, I should think so.
There's no way in hell he improves by 10%. Most athletes are happy if they can do 1, maybe 2% better...unless he was slacking off significantly, he can't do that much better. Regarding the statement someone made that LD isn't 50 and fitness shouldn't be as much of an issue - you're not taking into consideration that there's another pro athlete on the other side of the net, in the case of KM someone who is very dedicated and professional as far as we can tell. He will be near his best possible condition, and he is much younger to boot. This isn't a regional league where an old wily guy can come in and beat the young'uns because he has experience and used to play 4 leagues higher. These are the elite players of the planet, all trying their best to win, and because almost everyone has gotten very smart about their training, even being 6 years past your prime is a very significant disadvantage. Btw, explosive strength is the first thing that starts to go as you age. Which is exactly what LD is lacking, seeing how he doesn't jump or change direction like he used to. Concerning the LD vs LCW thing, LD should be in a much better position physically than LCW. Yes, LCW didn't let up in his training, but then he got cancer. He lost a significant amount of weight, and since he had no fat to begin with, we can assume that's all muscle - which is really hard to rebuild, especially at his age... Even still, I don't judge LD negatively on his fitness levels now. I don't know how much he messed himself up in his youth, and since I heard he used to stay behind and do extra footwork I could definitely see him having joint issues now. FHF shared a lot of the training, and when he retired he commented on how his last year was really a struggle because he had so much knee pain and couldn't do the same amount of training anymore. While I'm still sceptical of LD's potential for improvement, I'm not blaming him as it's not necessarily his fault. I just find it sad that he's reached the stage where he's a common first or second round exit. Even relatively bad players like Lakshya Sen trouble him routinely, or even beat him....sad to see him go like that. Seems at this point like the 2017 WC was his swan song (or Malaysia Open if you only consider tournament wins).
Precisely, it's because I believe Lin Dan has slackened so much that I asked for 10% improvement, otherwise 5% or a little less would be more than enough for him. The fact that he has now dropped so much in speed and power relative to what he was just four years ago at the Incheon Asian Games, not to mention his heydays prior and up to LOG'12, made it so obvious he is currently a far cry from what he was capable of - I've in mind his renowned defining characteristics which I needn't spell it out - that I can only sadly described as unrecognisable, practically a different player , so much rallying, stroke play , so passive and defensive most of the time ,his ability to finish off the rally after getting the return he wants - is simply woeful, and that's not an exaggeration. I mean, just his trademark killer smash alone has become so few and far between that we can count with the fingers of one hand, and even then he would usually only execute his normal smash, not his famous full-bodied jump smash, when he is quite sure it's unlikely to come back with interest. Overall, we can tell Lin Dan nowadays is relying a lot on his immense knowledge and experience coupled with his remarkable reading and anticipation of the game to move his opponents all over the court and save himself from having to run around too much. And how often do we see him left stranded or just watching and letting the shuttle go without attempting to retrieve it even when he sees it coming - that to me is not a sign of laziness but, rather, sluggishness and lack of fitness and stamina, particularly at the end of a longer than average rally, let alone those long, punishing ones where he is more often than not the first to commit an error, forced or unforced. As for LCW's physical condition, it's clear what I have in mind is before he's struck with nose cancer. Admittedly,I'd like to believe LCW is still able to resume where he left off soon after his successful treatment and comeback. However, whether he can play as well as before is anybody's guess, still an open question. Luckily for him, a blessing, it's diagnosed as early stage cancer and now in full remission after therapy, with the doctor giving him the green light to return to active competition in good time. True, Lin Dan is not 50 years old, just 35, but,still, fitness will be an issue for him at top level professional badminton if he doesn't train the way his one year older archrival, LCW, has been doing all these years. Just look at 21-year-old He Bingjiao. And what about Tai Tzu Ying when she started working on her physique, an amazing transformation to be where she is today ?! Even if you think Lin Dan's fitness level at the moment isn't all that bad, we just have to compare and contrast his performance these few months with what he was capable of, don't have to go far back, just earlier this year at the MAS Open which he won beating LCW as well as the All England quarterfinals match with the same adversary - the decline is unmistakable. At what level is Lin Dan's form now, 60, 70 or 80% of his best ? Can he ever get back to 90% if he's determined to qualify for Tokyo 2020 ? Well, we all have our views and opinions, it's nice sharing them, including wishful thinking. As someone once said here, Lin Dan sure leaves us wanting more - and I hasten add, we just can't get enough of him. Cheers.
Dude, the Malaysia Open he won was 2017. He lost in the 2nd round this year. Looking at the list of players he lost to this year is depressing af btw - Mustofa, Wangchareon, Ng Ka Long, Shi YQ, Wang TW, Lee DK, HS Prannoy, Momota K, A Ginting, Nishimoto K, Srikanth K, Sakai K, S Dey. Unbelievable. More than half of these would've celebrated getting to 10 in one game a few years ago....only 3 are really good. Sometimes I watch the 2011 WC and feel sad and elated at the same time, seeing the unbelievable consistency and calculated aggression he was capable of.
Allow me to ask a hypothetical question - if we pit the 38-year-old Lee Hyun Il who just won the Macau Open two weeks ago against Lin Dan today, who do you think will come out on top ?
Why LinDan has dropped off so much is sad. Still remembered him winning the MalaysiaOpen last year @ perpaduan silencing the fans. Even the fans in front of me go berserk the moment Lee lost. And he still can go to WC Final last year (?) I am sure LD will be back. He is from the military in his youth days, totally different from LCW per se. He said the military was tiring thats why he quit it and become badminton player. I am sure he still can compete for Tokyo OG.
