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World Championships: Kim and Ra Capture Mixed Doubles Title

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

May 22, 1999 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - Kim Dong Moon and Ra Kyung Min of Korea today captured the world mixed doubles championship of badminton by beating Simon Archer and Joanne Goode of England 15-10 and 15-13 in the final match. With the victory, Kim added the world mixed doubles title to his 1996 Olympic gold medal and Ra got a world crown to go with her 1996 Olympic silver medal.

Kim and Ra had to battle hard to win the title match from the English pair. The first game was nip-and-tuck with the two pairs exchanging leads amid furoius and frentic rallies of crosscourt drives, booming smashes and deftly-placed touchshots. The Korean pair finally pulled away for good at 9-8 and reached game point 14-10 when Goode's drive reply went into the net.

Kim and Ra then took the set when Kim went on the attack and, despite good defending from Archer, struck a game-winning smash towards Archer's backhand side.

In the second game, the Koreans raced off to a 7-2 lead as they focused their play on Joanne Goode and away from the dangerous and powerful Simon Archer. The channel attack worked as Goode was pressured into several mistakes. Archer though did not give up. As he encouraged his partner on, he began to assert himself in the rallies and pulled his partnership even with the Koreans at 11-all when he pressured Kim into a net error with a very fast driveshot exchange.

Kim and Ra pulled away again when Goode mistimed a shot for an error and when Archer stretched to hit a backhanded lift, only to send the shuttle long.

Still, the English did not fold. Archer came back at the Koreans with his smashes and, with Goode's aid at the attack, forced Kim into blocking a smash out-of-bounds. Archer and Goode were only a point behind 12-13.

After a series of scoreless service turns, Archer and Goode got the Koreans into a drive shot exchange and tied the score at 13-all when Kim struck a backhand reply wide.

The Koreans gained the serve back as they attacked and Ra was able to finish with a kill to Goode's backhand side.

Kim then served and pressured Archer into a drive reply that sailed long. The Koreans were now at championship point.

The English stopped the Koreans twice, first on a Kim error to the net and then on an Archer clipped jumpdrop that caught the Koreans out. However, Archer and Goode could not score on their two chances. Kim took one chance away with a jumpsmash into the space between Archer and Goode and then Ra took the second out with a difficult round-the-head crosscourt kill.

The Koreans were at match point again. Ra served to Goode and. The Koreans got on the attack and Kim pounded a winning crosscourt smash at Archer.

(mc/ds)