Happy returns for Loh, Yeo at world championships

Having secured the Taipei Open crown, a second-place finish at the German Open and a bronze at the Badminton Asia Championships in the first half of 2025, Loh Kean Yew was looking to extend his fine run and rise up the world rankings.

- David Lee

But the men's singles world No. 9 was hit by a bacterial infection after a training camp in Taipei that left him confined to his bed, causing him to miss out on the Japan and China Opens in July.

On Aug 25, the 28-year-old made his return to international competition at the Badminton World Federation World Championships, overcoming a sluggish start at the Adidas Arena in Paris to beat 234th-ranked Mauritian Julien Paul 21-15, 21-12 in 31 minutes.

The 2021 world champion could not find his range early on and fell into a 0-5 deficit, before he got going with some deft drops and smashes to set up a second-round match against Finland's 54th-ranked Kalle Koljonen on Aug 26.

Loh said: "I was bedridden for weeks and I had a short preparation time for these world championships. It took me a while to get used to the conditions in the opening match.

"I'm just focusing on the next match now and hope things will go well and get better for me from here."