China's world No 1 badminton player, Lin Dan, made a shock exit in the first round of the Athens Olympics only to watch arch-rival Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia snaffle gold.
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China's Lin Dan returns a shot to Malaysia's Wong Choong Hann in the third round of the men's singles at the All England badminton championships in Birmingham, England in January, 2006. The world No 1 will strive for his first Olympic gold medal this August. [Agencies]
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Now the fallen star is armed with sturdier mind and overflowing motivation to swipe his first Olympic gold medal.
Backed up by teammates Bao Chunlai and Chen Jin, currently ranked 3rd and 4th in the world respectively, Lin knows nothing less than a gold medal for China will suffice at the home Olympics.
"This is the best chance for me and also for my teammates to win a goal medal," said Lin, the dominant force in men's singles since 2004 as the official world No 1 for most of that time.
"I am in very good form right now. And all of us will be in full gear coming into the Olympic Games."
Although nicknamed Super Dan by fans, Lin has recently lost matches he should have won, like last month's Thomas Cup semi-final match against Malaysia, April's Badminton Asia Championships and some of the IBF Super Series stages.
But Lin remains the sport's biggest star and the red-hot favorite at each tournament.
Shrugging off those losses, he has proved he can deliver at significant moments.
He put the Chinese on the road to victory with a tight opening singles win against Park Sung-hwan in the Thomas Cup final and said the victory would spur him to Olympic gold in front of home fans in August.
"I'm not assuming I will win the gold medal. There are many players who are capable of challenging me," said the three-time world champion. "But I have the confidence to beat anyone of them as long as I can keep good form."
Lin's determination and good form is a positive signal for the badminton team.
But doubts still surround the temperamental shuttler's ability to stay composed under pressure, especially after reports surfaced in April that Lin fought with team coach Ji Xinpeng during the national team's training camp in Fujian province.
Lin is said to have taken a swing and to have been pulled off him after attacking him a second time.
About three months earlier, Lin was involved in another clash, with South Korea's Chinese head coach Li Mao during the Korea Open Super Series final against Lee Hyun-il.
Critics have criticized Lin's head coach and the sport's governing body, charging that they have spoilt Lin.
But this time in Beijing, he will be supported by Bao Chunlai and in-form younger gun Chen Jin.
Both performed impressively during April's Thomas Cup victory.
