Two GTAers’ Olympic hopes are revived thanks to some shady badminton shenanigans

An Olympic scandal has worked out in Canada’s favour: badminton players Alex Bruce of Toronto and Michele Li of Markham are back from the brink of elimination after a Chinese team, an Indonesian team and two South Korean teams were disqualified for match-throwing. The teams were trying to lose to ensure they’d have easier match-ups in subsequent rounds (an official told the Toronto Star the dishonourable practice isn’t unheard of in lower profile events). Needless to say, the audience who expected (and paid) to see Olympic-level badminton were not impressed with the beginner-style skills displayed. As the players served into the net, missed some shots and over hit others, the crowd started booing and chanting “off, off, off.’’ And the Badminton World Federation complied, disqualifying those players and ushering Bruce and Li into the quarter finals. Chalk one point down for sportsmanlike conduct. [Globe and Mail]