Setiawan, Hyunah shine on final of Fazza Dubai Para Badminton event
- 29 May 2022
Gulf Today, Staff Reporter
The 4th Fazza Dubai Para Badminton International 2022 came to a close with a colourful ceremony, with Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan and South Korean Kwon Hyunah emerging on top of the championships, winning three gold medals each at the Shabab Al Ahli Club on Sunday.
Setiawan, the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics bronze medallist, first partnered with Khalimatus Sadiyah to defeat Taiyo Imai and Noriko Ito from Japan 21-11, 18-21, 21-7 in the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 final, before producing an impressive show in the men’s singles SL4 final.
Setiawan overcame a second game scare from India’s Tarun Dhillon to pull off a surprise 21-11, 9-21, 23-21 win in the men’s singles final. Later, he combined with Dwiyoko Dwiyoko to win the men’s doubles match against fellow Indonesians Himmat Ramdani and Ukun Rukaendi, 21-18, 21-16.
"Even though I was trailing in the third game, I kept believing in my abilities. I tried to focus on one point at a time, and this worked for me. When Iplay, I don’t see any one player as the top player in my category as they are all equal to me.
"My main focus for now is to improve my physical strength in my training," said the 30-year-old, who aims for gold in the ASEAN Para Games and World Championships.
Meanwhile, Korean women’s wheelchair shuttler Hyunah took three gold medals in women’s singles WH1, women’s doubles WH1-WH2 and mixed doubles WH1-WH2. Hyunah defeated Switzerland’s Cynthia Mathez 21-12, 21-19.
The Egyptian Shaimaa Samy Abdellatif was delighted to receive the women’s singles WH1 bronze medal, promising to come back stronger in upcoming events.
As many as 22 gold medal matches were played on the day, with Indonesia collecting the most with a total of 6 gold medals, followed by Korea (5), who also had Choi Jungman taking two gold medals in men’s singles WH1 and men’s doubles WH1-WH2. India too had their share of golden moments, picking up five gold medals thanks to the efforts of top shuttlers Pramod Bhagat and Manasi Joshi, besides promising Manisha Ramadass, who claimed two gold in women’s singles SU5 and women’s doubles SL3-SU5.
Hong Kong’s Paralympic silver medallist Chu Man Kai took the men’s singles SH6 and men’s doubles SH6 gold medal, while his compatriot Cho Ho Yuen, Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist, had to settle for the silver after fighting for 56 minutes against Japan’s Paralympic champion Daiki Kajiwara, 21-16, 5-21, 19-21.
"I am happy with the way I played. But I will go back home and work on my defensive tactics. It's tough to beat Daiki, he is very fast and comes back strongly," said the 37-year-old Yuen.
Malaysia’s Cheah Liek Hou took two titles in the men’s singles SU5 and men’s doubles SU5 finals. "These two winning titles will motivate me to continuously train for upcoming events," he said.
Among the prominent names who graced the closing ceremony were Major General Mohammad Ahmad Rafi, Assistant Commander for Administrative Affairs-Dubai Police; Ghazi Al Madani, secretary general of the UAE Badminton Federation; Ian Wright, Director of Development department at Badminton World Federation; and Viktor Axelsen, World No. 1 Badminton player; Fazza Championships President Thani Juma Berregad; and Director of Championships Majid Al Usami, among others.
