KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia was in anguish on Friday over an injury tobadminton world number one Lee Chong Wei that threatens thecountry's only serious hope of capturing its first Olympic goldmedal. The star shuttler suffered a "minor ligament tear" in his rightankle on Tuesday at the Thomas Cup in Wuhan, China, beforereturning home where doctors are preparing stem-cell treatments ina desperate bid to get him fit. Lee, 29, had set his sights on defeating his great rival Lin Dan ofChina in a battle for the gold medal at the London Olympicsbeginning in July. Lin has repeatedly dashed Lee's dreams on the biggest stages,including in the finals of the 2008 Olympics and last year's worldchampionships. But Lee's hopes were now "a distant dream", the Malay Mailnewspaper lamented Friday. "If Lee had aspired to get ahead of China's Lin Dan in a majorevent, that now has to be on the back-burner. Reality is, perhaps,it will never happen," it said. Sieh Kok Chi, secretary of the Olympic Council of Malaysia,admitted to AFP there was now less hope of a Malaysian gold inLondon. "We just hope and pray he recovers quickly. We cannot forecast. Wecan only dream," he said. Malaysian press reports said Lee would undergo treatment thatinvolves receiving injections of his own stem cells into theinjured ankle three times over a two-week period. The cells are used to help damaged tissues heal and regeneraterather than opting for more invasive and traumatic surgery, doctorswere quoted as saying. The cells to be used were left over from a batch harvested in 2009when Lee underwent similar treatment for a knee injury. Lee is expected to take up to six weeks to recover, reports said,which would leave just two more weeks to work on his fitness aheadof the Olympics. "He will be at the Olympics but we cannot guarantee him playing toplevel badminton," Ramlan Aziz, the National Sports Institute'schief executive officer, was quoted saying by the New Straits Timesnewspaper. Meanwhile, a former top Malaysian badminton official, Goh ChengTeik, urged Lee to skip the Olympics as it would be impossible forhim to recover and play satisfactorily. "He risks bigger injuries and humiliating defeats by unknowns," hesaid in a letter to the Malay Mail. Lee's injury is the latest blow for the Malaysian, whosepreparations for the Olympics have already been hampered by ashoulder problem, a bout of influenza and a series of disappointingresults this season. - AFP/de. I am an expert from automotive-diagnostictool.com, while we provides the quality product, such as China Car Service Reset Tool , Auto Diagnostic Software Manufacturer, Car Key Programer,and more.
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