** HELP!!! Keep NEW SHUTTLENWS going - BUY our sponsor's products. **

Sudirman Cup: Kirkegaard and Olsen Put Danes Into Final

** This NEW SHUTTLENWS report is presented by YANG YANG Badminton Products and their Western USA agents BADMINTON ALLEY. **

May 14, 1999 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - Helene Kirkegaard and Rikke Olsen put Denmark into their first world mixed team badminton championships final with a closing match victory in the semifinals of the 1999 Sudirman Cup tournament now underway in Brondby just outside of Copenhagen, Denmark. Kirkegaard and Olsen broke a 2-matches all tie in Denmark's semifinal contest with Indonesia and clinched victory for the Danes with a 17-15 and 15-7 women's doubles triumph over Deyana Lomban and Indarti Isoliana.

The Danish pair had control of the first game and was comfortably ahead 12-7. Lomban and Isoliana though staged a determined comeback and battled Kirkegaard and Olsen into a tiebreak. The Danes took the initiative in the setting, scoring first and then winning at 17-15.

In the second game, Kirkegaard and Olsen, who used to play together regularly but who are now partnered with other players, raced to a commanding 11-4 lead and then a 15-7 victory over the fading Indonesians.

Indonesians Trikus Heryanto and Minarti Timur had disappointed the Danish fans in the opening mixed doubles match when they came back from a 12-15 first game setback to defeat Michael Sogaard and Rikke Olsen 15-11 and 15-9 in the next two sets.

Men's singles world number one Peter Gade put the Danes on the scoreboard when he overwhelmed Taufik Hidayat in an unexpectedly one-sided contest 15-4 and 15-1. Camilla Martin handed the Danes a 2 matches to 1 advantage when she eased her way to a women's singles victory over Cindana Hartono 11-4 and 11-6 in the third match.

Indonesian men's doubles aces Chandra Wijaya and Tony Gunawan then knotted the team contest up at 2 matches apiece when they beat Jens Eriksen and Jesper Larsen 15-12 and 15-7.

Kirkegaard and Olsen followed with their women's doubles victory and boosted Denmark into a 3-2 team triumph and into the Sudirman Cup final against China, 3-2 winners over Korea in this afternoon's semifinal contest.

(mc/ds)