World No. 1 Carolina Marin played her best, and was understandably proud to have clinched the Olympic gold, to complement her two World Championship titles.
"I gave everything on court. It is really an important medal for Spanish badminton," said Carolina, quite excited and emotional about her achievement.
>A look back: Sindhu's incredible journey to silver
For her part, P. V. Sindhu was gracious in defeat and acknowledged the champion. "It was a fantastic game. She played brilliantly and I congratulate her," the 21-year-old said.
‘’My dream has come true. I just had to believe in myself," said Carolina, who thanked her country, her family and her team.
Coach Fernando Rivas and mind trainer Pablo del Rio had played a big part in building Carolina as a champion and she heartily thanked them for her achievement. "Thanks to the best team that I have, this medal is for them," the Olympic champion said.
Read: >Gopichand: a great mentor for Sindhu
Sindhu was elated with her silver medal, after all the hard work she put through the week in her maiden Olympics. ‘’This medal means everything to me. I am a silver medallist in my first Olympics, and I am on cloud nine," said Sindhu.
In the men’s semifinals, Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia pulled one back and dethroned the two-time Olympic champion and five-time World Champion, Lin Dan of China, with a 15-21, 21-11, 22-20 victory.
In the final, he will play another Chinese, Chen Long, who beat Viktor Axelsen of Denmark 21-14, 21-15.
The women’s bronze medal match was not played as Li Xuerui of China gave a walkover to Nozomi Okuhara of Japan, owing to a leg injury.
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