Lee Chong Wei to miss World Championships and Asian Games due to respiratory disorder

Having already played nine tournaments this year, 35-year-old Lee Chong Wei has made for a busy first-half of the season so far. And the diagnosis of the respiratory disorder will only dampen his opportunities of playing in Asian Games and World Championships over the next month as is strictly advised by his doctors.

“For the time being, he cannot undergo any intensive physical activity for a period of at least one month and therefore, we have to withdraw him from the BWF World Championships and also the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia,” the BAM statement said, according to Malay Mail.“During this period of recovery, we ask the public and the media to respect the privacy of Datuk Lee and his family,” the statement added.

Triple silver medalist at the Olympic Games, Lee Chong Wei first won his silver medal in 2008. It was the first time a Malaysia went into men's final event where he earned the title of Datuk after this achievement. This year, in the Asian Championships, Lee Chong Wei won bronze in men's singles at Wuhan.

In the Asian Team Championships, he grabbed a bronze in the men's team event at Alor Setar. He grabbed a gold in men's singles event at 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and a silver in the mixed team. However, Lee Chong Wei had lost to Japan's Kento Momota in the semifinals of the Indonesian Open.

Lee Chong Wei is going to miss the world championships that will be taking place from July 30 to August 5 in Nanjing, China. Whereas, the Asian Games will start from August 19 and continue till August 28 in Jakarta. After the speculations that he will be missing both these events, it has now been confirmed by the Badminton Association of Malaysia that Lee Chong Wei will miss out these two prestigious events.