CHINA OPEN: GADE, YE SIT ON TOP OF THE PICKS

** 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 **

November 4, 1997 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - Peter Gade Christensen, the 20-year old badminton prodigy from Denmark who last week rose to the top of the world rankings in the men's singles event, has been selected as the player most likely to win this week's China Open badminton championships at the Huangpu Stadium in Shanghai. Gade is on a hot streak, having won the German Open a month ago and the Hong Kong Open on Sunday. The youthful Dane also was a finalist at the U.S. Open in September and the Danish Open three weeks ago.

Seeded behind Gade is another Dane, Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen, the 1996 Olympic gold medalist who swings back into action this week after pulling out of the Hong Kong Open to be with his wife as she was about to give birth to their second child.

China's top men's singles players Dong Jiong and Sun Jun are seeded third and fourth.

American hope Kevin Han, the eleventh seed at last week's Hong Kong Open, is unseeded. He also has drawn former world champion Joko Suprianto of Indonesia, the twelfth seed, as his first round opponent.

World women's singles champion Ye Zhaoying tops the seeds in her event, followed by Denmark's Camilla Martin.

So strong is the field in the women's singles event that Gong Ruina, the Chinese player who took the Hong Kong Open championship this past Sunday, has not only been left unseeded at this China Open, she has not even been named to the main draw. Gong has to play the qualifying rounds that take place today.

On the other hand, the men's doubles event has a relatively weak draw with none of the world's top ten pairs entered. Top seeds are Nick Ponting and John Quinn of England, with China's Liu Yong and Zhang Wei as second seeds. U.S. Open and Hong Kong Open champions Kim Ding Moon and Ha Tae Kwon of Korea are unseeded but should be in the thick of the competition for the top prize.

Lee Wan Wah and Choong Tan Fook of Malaysia are the third seeds but have a tough opening round match against Kim and Ha who beat them last Saturday in the semifinals of the Hong Kong Open.

World champions Ge Fei and Gu Jun of China are the top seeds in the women's doubles event. World championships silver medalists Qin Yiyuan and Tang Yongshu of China are the second seeds, followed by two Danish pairs - Helene Kirkegaard and Rikke Olsen, and Lisbet Stuer-Lauridsen and Marlene Thomsen.

Top picks in the mixed doubles event are the world champions from China, Liu Yong and Ge Fei.

The full list of seeds:

Men's Singles
1. Peter Gade Christensen (Denmark)
2. Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen (Denmark)
3. Dong Jiong (China)
4. Sun Jun (China)
5. Peter Rasmussen (Denmark)
6. Thomas Stuer-Lauridsen (Denmark)
7. Luo Yigang (China)
8. Budi Santoso (Indonesia)
9. Ong Ewe Hock (Malaysia)
10. Fung Permadi (Taipei)
11. Jeroen van Dijk (Netherlands)
12. Joko Suprianto (Indonesia)
13. Yong Hock Kin (Malaysia)
14. Marleve Mainaky (Indonesia)
15. Rikard Magnusson (Sweden)
16. Chen Gang (China)

Women's Singles
1. Ye Zhaoying (China)
2. Camilla Martin (Denmark)
3. Gong Zhichao (China)
4. Dai Yun (China)
5. Zhang Ning (China)
6. Wang Chen (China)
7. Han Jingna (China)
8. Judith Meulendijks (Netherlands)

Men's Doubles
1. Nick Ponting/John Quinn (England)
2. Liu Yong/Zhang Wei (China)
3. Choong Tan Fook/Lee Wan Wah (Malaysia)
4. Hermono/Hian Eng (Indonesia)
5. Tony Gunawan/Victo Wibowo (Indonesia)
6. Tao Xiaoqiang/Ge Cheng (China)
7. Anurak Thiraratsakul/Tesana Panvisvas (Thailand)
8. Michael Sogaard/Janek Roos (Denmark)

Women's Doubles
1. Ge Fei/Gu Jun (China)
2. Qin Yiyuan/Tang Yongshu (China)
3. Helene Kirkegaard/Rikke Olsen (Denmark)
4. Lisbet Stuer-Lauridsen/Marlene Thomsen (Denmark)
5. Qian Hong/Liu Lu (China)
6. Liu Zhong/Huang Nanyan (China)
7. Etty Tantri/Cynthia Tuwankotta (Indonesia)
8. Catrine Bengtsson/Marina Andrievskaya (Sweden)

Mixed Doubles
1. Liu Yong/Ge Fei (China)
2. Michael Sogaard/Rikke Olsen (Denmark)
3. Bambang Suprianto/Rosalina Riseu (Indonesia)
4. Kim Dong Moon/Ra Kyung Min (Korea)
5. Janek Roos/Helene Kirkegaard (Denmark)
6. Zhang Jun/Liu Lu (China)
7. John Quinn/Donna Kellogg (England)
8. Simon Archer (England)/Catrine Bengtsson (Sweden)

(dsimmons)