Badminton at Olympics: Lakshya Sen falls to Axelsen in semis, to play bronze-medal playoff
Paris, Aug 4: India's dream of a first-ever Olympic gold in badminton will remain unfulfilled after Lakshya Sen suffered a straight-game defeat to reigning champion Viktor Axelsen in the men's singles semifinals at the Paris Games here on Sunday.
The 22-year-old from Almora, a world championships bronze medallist, squandered a three-point advantage in the first game and a 7-0 lead in the second to surrender 20-22 14-21 to the two-time world champion Axelsen in a 54-minute semifinal clash.
Sen will get another chance to become the first Indian male shuttler to win an Olympic medal when he meets Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia in the bronze medal playoff.
India have never won an Olympic gold medal in badminton with PV Sindhu claiming a silver and bronze at the Rio and Tokyo editions and Saina Nehwal securing a bronze in the London Games.
It was Sen's eighth loss to the Danish star with the Indian beating him only once at the 2022 German Open final.
"If I would have closed the first game, then I would have had better chance of closing the match. In the second game also, I started well but couldn't keep the lead," Sen told the broadcaster after the contest.
About losing the first game after being 20-17 ahead, Sen said "As the game went on, he started attacking more and I became passive, only defending. I should have taken chances and attacked more."
Axelsen thus made it to his second successive final at the Olympics and is now one step away from joining Chinese legend Lin Dan as a two-time gold medallist.
Of all his previous losses, this will hurt Sen the most as he had the chance to deal the first blow on his fancied opponent, but instead, he wilted under pressure against the towering Dane, who always found a way to wriggle out of tricky situations.
Axelsen's delaying tactics while serving also unsettled Sen a bit.
Sen struggled with the length, spraying wide and long to concede a 2-5 lead early on. He drew parity with a cross-court shot and then tried to construct the rallies. His trademark cross-court smashes deep into his opponent's forehand helped him to lead 8-7 at one stage.
The Indian kept the pressure on Axelsen and another fine cross-court and an on-the-line return gave him a two-point advantage.
Sen's patient play worked as Axelsen made a series of unforced errors to concede a 9-15 lead.
Axelsen won two good rallies, including one involving 43 shots. Soon, Sen moved to 17-11, but Axelsen then started dominating proceedings and rained down a monstrous forehand to narrow the lead down to 16-18.
Sen left his opponent wrong-footed with an away shot and then produced another incredible cross-court to gather three game points.
But the youngster imploded next as he lost all three of them after serving into net and going long twice. Sen sent a return to serve out and netted again to hand over the opening game to his rival.
Sen recovered quickly from the opening game reversal to zoom to a 7-0 lead after the change of sides but he flattered to deceive, as Axelsen scripted a stunning fightback.
The Indian looked too defensive and committed a series of unforced errors as the Dane made it 7-8 after nailing down another forehand smash.
At 10-7, Sen lost his racquet while defending a smash from Axelsen, who was back on level terms with another thundering smash. The Indian, however, managed a one-point advantage at the break, when the Dane erred.
Sen tried to up his game but Axelsen was alert and looked in good flow as he moved to 15-12 with his opponent missing the lines too often.
Axelsen looked in complete control as he rained down those forehand smashes at will to move to 19-14. A flat exchange ended at the net from Sen and it was six match points for the Dane, who sealed it when the Indian went wide again.
Summing up the match, Sen said, "I would take my learnings and positives from this game and give my 100 percent in bronze medal match.
"My parents, brother (Chirag Sen) is there in stands to support me. My mother is cooking lunch and dinner and sending me. I have got lot of support from the crowd and hope they will come tomorrow for the bronze medal match also."
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Bondi beach shooting: Ahmed al Ahmed’s heroic tackling of gunman earns him praise
Donations pour in for Ahmed’s recovery
Melbourne: Ahmed al Ahmed, a 43-year-old convenience store owner and father of two, is being widely praised for his bravery after he tackled and disarmed one of the gunmen during a deadly shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday, December 14.
The attack took place near a children’s playground during the “Chanukah By The Sea,” a Jewish event, the Hanukkah celebration, which was attended by hundreds of families.
Two gunmen opened fire on the crowd, killing 11 people and injuring many others. In total, 29 people were taken to hospitals across Sydney.
The video that quickly spread across social media showed Ahmed crouching behind parked cars before running towards one of the attackers. As shots rang out, he came from behind, placed the gunman in a headlock, and wrestled the firearm away.
During the struggle, Ahmed was shot twice by a second gunman, suffering injuries to his hand, arm, and leg. Despite his injuries, he managed to disarm the attacker. Australian media later confirmed Ahmed al Ahmed as the man seen in the viral footage.
After the attack, he was widely hailed as a hero. Donations began pouring in from across Australia and abroad to support his recovery.
Quoting Reuters, Hindustan Times reported that a GoFundMe campaign set up for Ahmed raised more than A$1.1 million within a single day. Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman was the largest donor, contributing A$99,999 and sharing the fundraiser on his X account.
Ahmed is currently recovering in St. George Hospital after undergoing surgery for gunshot wounds, and doctors have said he may require further procedures.
According to local reports, members of the public gathered outside St. George Hospital to show their support.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised Ahmed’s actions, saying they prevented the death toll from rising further.
“What we’ve seen in the last 24 hours was the worst of humanity in a terrorist act. But we also saw the best of humanity in Ahmed Al Ahmed running towards danger and putting his own life at risk,” Albanese told state run ABC News. He confirmed that Ahmed was shot twice by the second attacker during the incident.
Family members said Ahmed had no prior experience with firearms and acted purely on instinct.
Police later confirmed that two gunmen were involved in the attack. One was disarmed by Ahmed and later taken into custody in critical condition. The second gunman was fatally shot at the scene by a police officer who arrived shortly after Ahmed’s intervention.
A man who disarmed a terrorist has been identified as a Muslim named Ahmed Al Ahmad during an attack on a Jewish event in Sydney.
— Globe Eye News (@GlobeEyeNews) December 14, 2025
He prevented further harm to Jews. pic.twitter.com/OvU0y0iQq4
