KUALA LUMPUR: Para badminton ace Cheah Liek Hou remained laser-focused as he powered into the semi-finals of the China Para International despite being embroiled in a dispute with the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (PCM).
PCM had earlier threatened action against the 37-year-old after he took to social media to slam the body for failing to deliver a promised RM60,000 reward for his gold medal at last year’s Paris Paralympics.
Unruffled by the controversy, Liek Hou swept past Singapore’s Tay Wei Ming 21-17, 21-11 in the men’s singles SU5 (upper body impairment) quarter-finals in Beijing on Friday.
He will now face home favourite Li Mingpan for a place in the final.
The two-time Paralympic champion was delighted with his performance but knows a tougher test lies ahead.
“I was quite confident I could win today (Frisay),” said Liek Hou.
“The real challenge comes tomorrow (Saturday) against the Chinese youngster.
“He defeated Taiwan’s No 1 Fang Jen-yu in the last eight, and his performance was impressive.”
Liek Hou also booked a spot in the men’s doubles semi-finals with India’s Ruthick Ragupathi after the pair swept aside compatriots Rakesh Pandey-Dev Rathi 21-11, 21-13.
They will next take on French duo Meril Loquette-Lucas Mazur.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
