A Chinese badminton star who was 17 years old tragically died after passing out on the court.
Zhang Zhijie died last night during a match at the Asia Junior Championships in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. He had a heart attack while playing against Kazuma Kawano of Japan.
The teen fell to the ground when the score was 11–11.
Before being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance, medics rushed over to try to help him.
But after many failed attempts to bring him back to life, Zhang died.
At a press conference, Broto Happy, a spokesman for the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI), said, “Medical conclusions showed that the victim experienced sudden cardiac arrest.”
He also said that Zhang’s parents were on their way to Yogyakarta to get his body and bring it back home.
Happy also spoke out strongly in defense of medical staff and local organizers after video showed them hesitating to help the ace after he fell face down.
It was his claim that the medical teams had to wait for the referee to let them into the court.
Zhang learned to play badminton when he was in kindergarten.
Last year, he was picked for China’s national youth team, and to start off 2024, he won a singles title at the prestigious Dutch Junior International.
After hearing the sad news of his death, tributes started coming in right away.
“The world of badminton has lost a talented player,” BBC and Badminton Asia said.
PV Sindhu, an Indian star who won two silver and three bronze medals at the Olympics, said it was “absolutely heartbreaking” news.
He wrote on X, “I’m very sorry for Zhang’s family’s loss during this terrible time.”
“Today the world lost a truly amazing artist.”
A statement from China’s badminton association said the group was “deeply saddened.”
It also said, “Zhang Zhijie loved badminton and was a great player on the national youth badminton team.”
Also, there was a minute of silence today before the team tournament.
That night, when China beat Taiwan 3-0, they wore black armbands as a sign of respect.