BALIK PULAU, June 4 — The Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) believes that the Badminton World Federation (BWF) has strong reasons for giving recognition to the country’s legend Datuk Lee Chong Wei.

Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh said that Chong Wei’s induction into the 2023 BWF Hall of Fame was also based on the BWF’s data and statistics.

"I was there when he (Chong Wei) received the award and the recognition with Lin Dan, and if we look at the data and statistics, I believe the BWF had strong reasons before it gave the recognition.

"Besides, we are really proud of Lee Chong Wei's achievements,” she told reporters after flagging off the Balik Pulau Half Marathon 2023 participants at the Balik Pulau Sports Complex.

Hannah said this when asked to comment on the statement of former Indonesian badminton champion, Taufik Hidayat on social media, who questioned Chong Wei’s induction into the Hall of Fame along with China's Lin Dan.

In the video, Taufik also admitted that Lin Dan was more deserving and he questioned the existence of the name of the Malaysian player in the list.

On May 26, Chong Wei and Lin Dan were inducted into the BWF Badminton Hall of Fame for their achievements and contributions to the sport by being among the most influential and transformative players throughout their careers.

Chong Wei's dominance in the badminton arena saw him win 47 Super Series or BWF World Tour titles during his 19 years of involvement and hold the world No 1 for 349 weeks.

The 41-year-old Chong Wei is Malaysia's most successful badminton athlete, with three Olympic silver medals in 2008 Beijing, 2018 London and 2016 Rio editions. He was runner-up in three World Championships in 2011, 2013 and 2015.

Earlier, a total of 4,000 participants from 24 countries participated in the half-marathon. — Bernama