All posts tagged: Momota

Kento Momota retirement: Why Japanese legend’s career will not be defined by elusive Olympic glory | Badminton News

Published by Webster

New Olympic champions get crowned all the time. Every four years, at any rate. But Kento Momota will be remembered wistfully amongst the badminton legions, as one that got away. The crown eluded him, but he might well endure in public memory and shuttle’s mythos longer than anyone else with gold around the neck. An overwhelming favourite a year out from the Tokyo Games, Momota finished with one of the most underwhelming heartbreaks there, as he exited the last Olympics at the first stage. On Thursday, less than 100 days away from the Paris spectacle, Momota announced he was letting go of this ultimate dream. Unable to qualify, ranked outside Top 50, the Japanese dwelled on retirement after the Thomas Cup that would be his last assignment. The 29-year-old refused to shed tears in his retirement press conference for all the missed chances, the wretched turn of events with a horrific car accident in 2020, and for what could have been. #BAC2024 This run… simply incredible stuff. #KentoMomota https://t.co/FXqFWLztZZ pic.twitter.com/AjPZgAUmnx — Vinayakk (@vinayakkm) April 18, …

Former Number One Kento Momota Retires From International Badminton At 29

Published by Webster

Two-time world champion Kento Momota said Thursday he is retiring from international badminton aged 29, admitting he had never been the same since a serious car crash four years ago. Japan’s Momota was once badminton’s undisputed king, winning 11 titles in 2019 and losing just six of the 73 matches he played that year. But in January 2020 the vehicle taking him to Kuala Lumpur airport crashed hours after he won the Malaysia Masters. The driver was killed and Momota needed surgery to repair a fractured eye socket. When he returned after a year out Momota suffered double vision and failed to regain the scintillating form that had taken him to world number one, although he did win two more titles. “At the time of the accident I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think to myself, ‘Why me?’,” Momota told reporters in Tokyo on Thursday. Now ranked 52 and having missed out on a place at the Paris Olympics, Momota will retire from Japan’s national team after playing at the Thomas and Uber …

Former world no. 1 Kento Momota announces retirement

Published by Webster

Japanese badminton star Kento Momota announced his retirement on Thursday at a press conference in Tokyo. Momota, the former world no 1, will hang his badminton kits after the Thomas and Uber Cup in Chengdu, People’s Republic of China, where he will represent Japan. The tournaments are scheduled for April 27- May 5. Momota won the Thomas Cup in 2014 in New Delhi. Momota, 29, witnessed a slump in his career when he met with a fatal car accident in Malaysia in January 2020, just before the start of the Malaysia Open. “At the time of my retirement from the national team after the Thomas Cup at the end of this month, I would like to express my gratitude in person. Since the car accident in January 2020, there have been many difficult times, and I have tried to play the way I wanted to play, but I think I have had a fulfilling life in my career as a national team player,” Momota said at the press conference. “At the time of my retirement …