Korean Badminton legend Jung Jae-sung dies, Indian players mourn the loss

Jung Jae-sung, a former world No. 1 in doubles, had won bronze in the 2012 London Olympics.

Legendary Korean badminton player, Jung Jae-sung passed away on Friday. He was 35.

According to reports in Korean media, badminton player Jung Jae-sung had been diagnosed with arrhythmia three years ago and that he had complained of chest pains at times. (Twitter)

Jung, a former World No. 1 in doubles, had won a bronze medal along with his partner Lee Yong Dae at the 2012 London Olympics.

According to reports, Jung suffered a heart attack late on Thursday night.

Chung was found dead by his wife at their home early on Friday, a Korean badminton association official was quoted by Reuters, adding that the cause of death was not yet known and that an autopsy would be performed on Saturday.

Yonhap News quoted local police as saying Chung had been diagnosed with arrhythmia three years ago and that he had complained of chest pains at times.

“We never heard that coach [Jung Jae Sung] had an illness of any kind. He was even a torchbearer for the ‘Pyeongchang Olympics’ recently. Because this happened all too suddenly, we’re very taken back and confused,” said a representative from his Samsung Electronics badminton team in South Korea.

Former world No 1 Lee Chong Wei said: “This is sad news. I offer my condolences to his wife and two children and I pray that the family will stay strong”.

Top badminton players from India took to Twitter to pay homage to the iconic Korean player. Saina Nehwal, Parupalli Kashyap, Ajay Jayaram and Manu Attri were among the first from Indian badminton community to pay their respects to Jung.

Apart from winning Olympic bronze, Jung Jae-sung was a two-time All-England champion. He also won Korea Open thrice and reached atop the summit of doubles rankings in 2009. After his heroics in London Olympics, he retired from professional badminton.

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