SWISS OPEN: HOYER VERSUS DONG IN THE FINALS

** This NEW SHUTTLENWS report is sponsored by YANG YANG BADMINTON PRODUCTS and their Swiss agents, SQUIRREL SA (24-494-3222/fax:24-494-1131). **

March 22, 1997 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - It will be another rematch of the Atlanta Olympic Games gold medal match in tomorrow's men's singles finals of the Swiss Open badminton tournament in Basel. Gold medalist Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen of Denmark will battle Dong Jiong of China for championship honors once again.

Hoyer turned back Dong's teammate, Sun Jun, 15-3, 12-15 and 15-10 in a semifinal match earlier today, while Dong breezed past Danish national champion Peter Rasmussen 15-7 and 15-5.

Hoyer has been on a championship-less slump since winning the Olympic gold medal. He has only won one tournament, the Copenhagen Masters invitational in December, and has not won an open tournament since August.

Dong is back in form after being kept out of international tournaments since mid-January by the Chinese badminton association. He defeated Hoyer in last week's prestigious All-England Open in the semifinals and also beat Sun Jun to take the unofficial world title associated with winning the All-England.

In women's singles, top-seed Camilla Martin of Denmark and second-seed Ye Zhaoying of China will clash in the finals. Martin, who is celebrating her birthday this weekend, lost her focus in the second game of today's semifinal match against Lee Joo Hyun of Korea, but recovered her bearings in the decider.

The Dane had an 11-love first game win against Lee and then had a letdown in the second, allowing the Korean to take the game 7-11. Martin played with more focus in the third to clinch the match 11-5.

Ye dropped her first game to Indonesian archrival Susi Susanti 5-11 and then dominated in the next two games of her semifinal match 11-3 and 11-3.

In men's doubles, world number ones and top-seeds Sigit Budiarto and Chandra Wijaya avenged their semifinal defeat at last week's All-Englan Open. The Indonesian pair beat Ha Tae Kwon and Kang Kyung Jin of Korea 15-13 and 15-6 in today's semifinal match.

Their compatriots Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky, the Olympic gold medalists, did not fare as well against another Korean pair, Lee Dong Soo and Yoo Yung Sung. The Koreans beat the Olympic golden boys 15-8 and 15-12, and will face Sigit and Wijaya in tomorrow's finals.

In women's doubles, it will be an all-China finals. Top-seeds Ge Fei and Gu Jun turned back Helene Kirkegaard and Rikke Olsen of Denmark today 15-8 and 15-10, while the unseeded Han Jingna and Ye Zhaoying, two singles specialists, surprised Jang Hye Ock and Kim Shin Young of Korea 15-9 and 15-12.

Liu Yong and Ge Fei of China gained their fourth major mixed doubles final this year with their 5-15, 15-5 and 15-4 semifinal win over Imam Tohari and Ema Ermawati of Indonesia.

Flandy Limpele and Minarti Timur of Indonesia took the other mixed doubles semifinal, defeating Lee Dong Soo and Yim Kyung Jin of Korea 15-10 and 15-7.