New Delhi: A 17-year-old Chinese badminton player named Zhang Zhijie, died after collapsing on the court during an ongoing game at the Badminton Asia Junior Championships in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.
The tournament officials released a statement on Monday informing about the youngster’s untimely death. Meanwhile, shocking visuals have surfaced on the internet of Zhijie collapsing on the floor.
The teenager was suddenly taken ill during the match late Sunday against Kazuma Kawano of Japan. The score read 11-11 in the first game when Zhijie fell to the floor. He did receive treatment at the venue and was rushed to hospital by ambulance but couldn’t survive despite continuous efforts to resuscitate him. The cause of his death wasn’t immediately known.
‘Medical conclusions… indicated that the victim experienced sudden cardiac arrest,’ AFP quoted Broto Happy, spokesperson for the Badminton Association of Indonesia, as saying in a press conference.
Here’s the disturbing video –
Badminton Asia, PBSI, and the organizers of the 2024 Asian Junior Badminton Championships issued a joint statement concerning Zhang Zhijie’s death. ‘Chinese singles player Zhi Jie collapsed on the court during a match. The tournament doctor and medical team rushed to provide immediate assistance. He was then taken to the hospital by ambulance but was pronounced dead at 11:20 pm local time yesterday (Sunday). The badminton world has lost a talented player,’ they said.
Soon as the news was out, tributes started pouring in for the badminton prodigy including India’s star shuttler PV Sindhu. She took to the social media platform ‘X’ (formerly Twitter) to express her condolences.
‘Truly heartbreaking news from the Asian Junior Badminton Championships regarding the death of a young player named Zhang Zhi Jie,’ Sindhu wrote on X.
‘I express my deepest condolences to Zhi Jie’s family during this sad time. The world has lost an extraordinary talent,’ she added.
Teams pay respect
Zhang started playing badminton in kindergarten and made it to China’s national youth team last year. Earlier this year he clinched the singles title at the Dutch Junior International, a prestigious youth tournament. The teams participating in the competition held a moment of silence on Monday with the Chinese team wearing black armbands as a mark of respect.
