ALL CHINA GAMES: GE FEI AND LIU YONG SHINE

** This NEW SHUTTLENWS REPORT is presented by badminton world champions YANG YANG (1987 and 1989) and ZHAO JIAN HUA (1991) and by YANG YANG BADMINTON PRODUCTS **

October 23, 1997 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - Ge Fei and Liu Yong, the world champions in badminton mixed doubles, were the top stars in the Eighth All China Games badminton competition that ended last Thursday (October 16). Ge and Liu each won two individual gold medals. Ge took top honors with Liu in the mixed doubles event and also captured the title in the women's doubles with Gu Jun. Ge and Gu are the Olympic and world champions in that event.

Aside from his mixed doubles triumph, Liu won the men's doubles gold medal with partner Jiang Xin, one of the many former Chinese national team players who came back to compete in China's equivalent of the Olympic Games.

In men's singles, Chen Gang representing Zhejiang province took advantage of the absence of Chinese number one Dong Jiong to claim the title. Dong had been sent by the Chinese badminton association to Denmark to meet a commitment they had made to the International Badminton Federation and the Danish Badminton Association to send a top player to compete in the Danish Open badminton championships.

In women's singles, world champion Ye Zhaoying also representing Zhejiang defeated Gong Zhichao representing Hunan province in the finals 2 games to 1. Gong is the world championships silver medalist.

In the team events that were held the previous week, the province of Jiangsu took the men's title and Hunan captured the women's team crown.

(chongw/migrossman)