Loh Kean Yew poses with his Asian Games men's singles silver medal. (Photo: CNA/Wallace Woon)

Loh Kean Yew falls to Kunlavut Vitidsarn in Asian Games final, ends campaign with silver

Loh's silver is the best result by a Singaporean badminton player at the Asian Games.

29 Sep 2026, 10:51 by Matthew Mohan · CNA · Join

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NAGOYA: It was not the fairytale ending that Loh Kean Yew had hoped for, but a historic run for the Singaporean nonetheless after he took silver in the Asian Games badminton men's singles on Tuesday (Sep 29).

At the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium, world No 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn beat Loh 21-12, 21-16 in the final. Kunlavut was ranked second behind Indonesia's Jonatan Christie in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) men's singles rankings last week, but rose to world No 1 at the start of Tuesday.

Loh, ranked 13th, became the first Singaporean to win a badminton silver at the Asian Games. Before these Games, Singapore's only medal in the sport was a women's team bronze at Doha 2006.

"I'm happy about it, but at the same time, it is a bit sad that I couldn't get the gold medal as well," he said.

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Singapore's Loh Kean Yew and Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn after their men's singles badminton final match at the 2026 Asian Games at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Sep 29, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Wallace Woon)

Singapore's Loh Kean Yew in action against Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn during their men's singles badminton final match at the 2026 Asian Games at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Sep 29, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Wallace Woon)

Loh entered Tuesday's final with a 2-8 head-to-head record against Kunlavut, although Loh had won their most recent meeting in January.

"He's a very all-rounded player. He can attack well. He can defend well, and he's very smart when it comes to the tactical play as well," he said at a post-match press conference.

"Playing against Kunlavut, most of the shots are going to come back to you, and you just have to keep telling yourself to keep doing the same thing over again. You get more and more tired, but you still have to keep pushing through.

"He's also tired, but he's also pushing through ... Because it comes down to who slows down, who gets more tired, who gives up first mentally and physically as well. All this plays a part in the game."

The Thai won the men's singles world title in 2023, and followed that up with an Olympic silver a year later. He also beat Loh in the men's singles final at the SEA Games in 2022.

Unseeded at the Games, Loh had been in excellent form throughout the competition.

He started his campaign on Saturday by beating world No 14 Lakshya Sen before seeing off Malaysia's Justin Hoh in the round of 16.

His breakthrough came in the quarter-finals, when he snapped a 10-match winless streak against Christie to guarantee Singapore its first Asian Games badminton medal in 20 years.

Loh then beat South Korea’s Yoo Tae-bin in 69 minutes in the semi-finals to book his place in Tuesday's final.

"Not getting a gold medal is obviously a sad thing, but overall, I think I played well. And to be able to create history for Singapore is an achievement as well," said Loh.

"To be able to represent Singapore, to be part of the Asian Games team, that is always a privilege. And I'm very happy to be part of the team."

Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarnin in action against Singapore's Loh Kean Yew during their men's singles badminton final match at the 2026 Asian Games at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Sep 29, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Wallace Woon)

However, Loh's Asian Games' campaign has also come at a cost.

He told reporters that he re-aggravated an old abdominal injury and will need to give his body a rest after the Games and "see how it goes".

"I kind of pulled my abs a bit, and which means that I'm gonna go back to the injury phase," Loh said.

"Past few months I've been trying to get away from the injury, trying to get come back from the injury, and now it occurs again. So I'm not sure what's going to happen next, but for now, I'm just going to rest first and see how it goes."

Loh Kean Yew falls to Kunlavut Vitidsarn in Asian Games final, ends campaign with silver

Loh's silver is the best result by a Singaporean badminton player at the Asian Games.

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