1. The introduction reveals the grand occasion of the legendary reunion
In 2023, at the world-renowned BWF Hall of Fame ceremony, a historic moment was staged - Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan, once known as the "Four Kings of Badminton", finally fulfilled their years-long expectations and once again joined hands to attend this glorious gathering.
In an instant, the whole scene cheered for this deep friendship, and they seemed to have become a beautiful scenery in the long river of history, and the audience had the privilege of witnessing the reunion moment of the former rivals, who have now become close friends.
They looked at each other and smiled, their eyes shining with joy that could not be concealed. Li Chongwei stepped forward without hesitation and gave Lin Dan a warm hug, as if through this long-lost hug, he confided in this former opponent about the indescribable bitter journey and unremitting efforts in the past.
He sighed affectionately: "Three have been missing one for a long time, and I am extremely proud of you!" Now that the Four Heavenly Kings have reunited, we have come all the way, and it is worth the trip."
Lin Dan responded with warm applause, his face filled with sincere joy. Time flies, they used to fight each other in the arena, but today, they have put aside all barriers, understood each other, and become confidants and friends who promote the development of badminton.
The audience couldn't help but be moved, such a scene is a witness to the strong cohesion of sports.
Those once fierce competition pictures seem to be presented one by one in front of you. The two giants of the feather world reunited again, and they were full of emotion and joy. The grievances of the past have long since dissipated with the wind, leaving only a deep respect for each other and an endless love for badminton.
Looking back, their matchup on the court is undoubtedly the focus of the entire badminton world. Li Chongwei and Lin Dan were once the two brightest stars in the badminton world, and every time they played each other, they became an eternal memory in the hearts of the majority of fans.
2. The tragic beginning of Li Zongwei's life
Lee Chong Wei was born into a poor and backward family in Malaysia, his parents were originally immigrants from Zhangzhou, Fujian Province, China, who had to leave their homeland and go to Malaysia to work hard in order to make a living.
In this family, Lee Chong Wei is the youngest child and has been under heavy pressure from an early age.
One afternoon when he was 11 years old, Lee Chong Wei quietly slipped out of his house to play basketball on a nearby court. As the youngest child in the family, he never received much love, and deep down he was always lonely, longing for the approval of others.
The passionate sports on the basketball court brought him endless joy, as if in that moment, he could temporarily forget all the bitterness of life. However, the good times were always fleeting, and the blazing sun relentlessly burned his delicate skin, turning it dark and shiny.
Seeing her son's painful appearance, Li Jinshui, as a mother, was worried that he would be hurt again, so she resolutely decided to strictly prohibit him from participating in any related sports.
Just when Li Zongwei felt lost and at a loss, fate opened another new door to him. One day, he happened to pass by a nearby badminton court and was deeply fascinated by the sport in front of him, and his inner love prompted him to pick up a racket without hesitation and sweat it to his heart's content.
Surprisingly, he showed amazing talent and attracted the attention of a well-known coach passing by, who was so impressed by his talent that he personally visited and sincerely invited Lee Chong Wei to join the badminton professional school.
Since then, the young Li Zongwei has been under the disciple of a famous teacher, where he has constantly tempered himself, trained diligently day and night, and made efforts beyond ordinary people. Sometimes, in order to master a small technical movement, he would even practice for more than ten hours in a row until he was exhausted.
With his unwavering hard work, he was invincible on the pitch and won high praise from the head coach of the national team, Frost. In just six years, he has progressed from an unknown state team to the Malaysian national team, becoming a new generation of badminton stars.
3. The two rookies met for the first time
In 1999, at the age of 17, Lee Chong Wei won the Malaysian National Championships and successfully became one of the rising stars of Malaysian badminton. The following year, he took on a mission to go on an international journey to compete in the Asian Youth Championships as a member of the Malaysian youth team.
It was also his first meeting with Lin Dan on the international stage.
The fierce collision between the two rookies on the field instantly ignited the enthusiasm of the audience. They fought fiercely on the court for three rounds, you went back and forth, no equal, and finally unfortunately lost to Lin Dan by one point.
Despite the loss, the young Lee Chong Wei was not discouraged by this, but developed a sincere admiration and admiration for this formidable opponent, and looked forward to the opportunity to meet again on a higher level stage in the future.
Since then, the trajectories of the two athletes' lives seem to have been deeply intertwined, and they have been inseparable through thick and thin. Time flies, and the competition between them is a whopping 37 times.
Lin Dan has undoubtedly become an insurmountable mountain in Li Chongwei's competitive career, giving him endless pressure and challenges.
However, Lee Chong Wei also won 12 matches against Lin Dan in this long time. However, in the crucial seven World Championships, he has only won a measly one, which shows that Lin Dan always has the advantage when it matters most.
However, for the two top players at the time, victory or defeat no longer seemed so important, and more importantly, they would always be rivals and friends in each other's competitive careers.
Part 4: A true account of Lee Chong Wei's brilliant life
Although Lee Chong Wei has been defeated repeatedly in front of the mountain of Lin Dan, his career is still shining brightly, which can be called the pride of the Malaysian badminton world. In just six years since winning the Malaysian National Championships in 1999, he has managed to make it to the national team and won hundreds of titles in his career, making him almost the king of the new era of Malaysian badminton.
However, on the final night of all three Olympic Games, Lee Chong Wei finished as runner-up, missing out on the coveted Olympic gold medal. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, every time he met Lin Dan again, he was defeated by a narrow margin.
The outside world even gave him a ruthless nickname - "the second millennium".
Despite the regrets on his way to winning gold at the Olympics, Lee Chong Wei was still able to write his own legendary chapter on the court. In addition to winning numerous titles during his career, he is also a master of the arts in the hearts of the Malaysian people, and is known as the "King of Badminton" and "Wonder Boy".
It is no exaggeration to say that until the badminton star suddenly fell seriously ill, his legendary career was filled with incomparably brilliant brilliance. Almost no one could have predicted that this badminton player, who had just spent his 36th birthday and was at the peak of his career, would suffer a sudden serious illness that ruthlessly pulled him away from the court, forcing him to carry a heavy bag and embark on a long journey to fight to the death.
Looking back, Lee Chong Wei's desire for the coveted Olympic gold medal is so intense! Every time he faced Lin Dan in the ring, he would give his best without reservation, sometimes clenching his teeth, sometimes bursting into tears of excitement.
For the Malaysian "Ball King", an Olympic gold medal is not only the biggest dream of his career, but also the highest praise for his hard work.
However, fate always likes to play tricks on people. Missing the opportunity to win the Olympic gold medal three times has undoubtedly become the biggest regret in Lee Chong Wei's life. Despite this, he still enjoyed the process of competing with Lin Dan in the Circle, because it was the best testimony to the life journey of the two of them, and they were both rivals and close friends.
Perhaps it was this special fate that made them let go of all their grievances and become mentors and friends who talked about everything in their reunion after retiring.
5. The hardships and challenges of chemotherapy
In 2018, Li Zongwei, who was 36 years old at the time, was diagnosed with esophageal cancer by the doctor! This bad news was like a thunderbolt from the sky, instantly shattering this originally happy family.
In just a few days, from a happy family couple to a highly respected football king, the aura on Lee Chong Wei's body, which was once the envy of everyone, seems to have collapsed in an instant.
Seeing her husband's fear and despair gradually transform into a firm belief in fighting the disease, his wife Huang Miaozhu's feelings can be imagined how complex and painful they are.
The doctor told him that in order to achieve a complete cure, Lee Chong Wei would have to undergo up to 33 courses of chemotherapy.
Every time he was injected with chemotherapy drugs, Li Zongwei's entire throat would fall into extreme pain, as if it had been torn viciously, and the pain would make him sometimes clench his teeth and sometimes be in pain.
In the face of this disease, which devours humanity, every swallow he swallows is transformed into a torment like walking torture. In order to relieve the endless pain, he chose to spray an anesthetic on his throat, but the severe pain still followed, without the slightest respite.
Tortured this tough man over and over again.
Seeing her beloved struggling in pain, his wife Huang Miaozhu's heart hurt as if she had been cut by a knife. Whenever she heard her husband's painful moans, she would always subconsciously turn her head, as if she couldn't face this tragic scene.
However, in the face of her husband Li Zongwei, she never showed the slightest tiredness or complaint, but comforted her husband with warm words, so that he could devote himself wholeheartedly to the fight against the disease, and all the burden was borne by her alone.
In this long and difficult battle against cancer, the cost of treatment alone is as high as a staggering 9.36 million yuan. For an average family, this is undoubtedly a huge burden that is almost unbearable.
However, Lee Chong Wei's family did not complain about this, and they firmly believed that as long as Lee Chong Wei could completely defeat the disease, these difficulties would be solved.
This desperate struggle with death is undoubtedly the most difficult and moving journey in Lee Chong Wei's life. During this period, his wife Huang Miaozhu was always by his side, never leaving him, and endowed her husband with endless spiritual strength with her firm and courageous love and support.
The couple's emotional bond was intimately linked as early as their youth. At the age of 17, Lee Chong Wei and Huang Miaozhu met and fell in love, both of them were rising stars in the badminton world at that time, with common athletic talents and dreams, and they quickly fell in love with each other.
With the blessings of relatives and friends, they walked into the palace of marriage hand in hand and built a happy family full of sunshine and laughter.
After marriage, Lee Chong Wei's career was in full swing, and his wife Huang Miaozhu always stood silently behind him and gave him selfless support. Soon after, the loving couple was born with a new life, and in the years that followed, they conceived two lively and adorable boys.
The family is happy, creating a small world full of warmth and happiness, so that Li Zongwei can feel the warmth and motivation of home when he struggles in the arena.
However, just as the beautiful life of this small family is approaching the peak of life, misfortune comes quietly like a shadow in the night, ruthlessly shattering all this sweet happiness.
Mr. Lee Chong Wei was diagnosed with esophageal cancer, and for a 36-year-old athlete, such a heavy blow was a bolt from the blue, so that he had to temporarily put aside all his glory and glory and devote himself to the desperate struggle against death.