Lee Chong Wei finally defeats old foe Lin Dan

Lee Chong Wei finally got the better of old foe Lin Dan at an Olympic Games by winning a thrilling men's badminton singles semifinal on Friday.

Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan embrace at the end of the semifinals.

Lee Chong Wei finally got the better of old foe Lin Dan at an Olympic Games by winning a thrilling men's badminton singles semifinal on Friday.

Malaysian Lee has been the nearly man of the Olympics having finished runner-up to Lin in Beijing in 2008 and London four years ago.

But on this occasion Lee came from a game down to earn a 15-21, 21-11, 22-20 victory to progress to Rio 2016's gold medal match, where Chen Long awaits.

It was almost another agonising heartbreak for Lee as Lin saved three match points, including a scarcely believable recovery in a mammoth rally when trailing 20-19.

Lee was not to be denied, though, as he finally settled the contest at the fourth attempt before the two men showed true Olympic spirit by exchanging shirts and a warm hug at the end of the contest.