Kunlavet Vitidsarn and Loh Kean Yew set for historic Asian Games badminton final

Former world champion Kunlavet Vitidsarn secured his place in the Asian Games men's singles final after a straight-sets victory over Indonesia's Alwi Farhan at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium. The world No. 2, who also holds a 2023 world title and an Olympic silver, will face Singapore's Loh Kean Yew, the 2021 world champion, who defeated South Korea's Yoo Tae Bin in a three-set semi-final. This final will be the first in Asian Games history without a Chinese or Indonesian contender, dealing a significant blow to China, which will have no men's singles medalist for the first time.

In the women's singles, South Korea's An Se Young and Japan's Akane Yamaguchi will meet for gold, while other events saw notable upsets and medalists across Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and China. The outcomes will shape the badminton medal table and highlight the rising prominence of Southeast Asian players.