World No. 2 Lu Lan from China entered the last 16 of the badminton tournament at the Beijing Olympics, as her rival Karen Foo Kune from Mauritius retired over injuries in Beijing on Sunday.
Lu beat Kune 21-3 in the first game, while Foo Kune retired in the middle of the second game.
Lu said "the competition ended too early, even before I felt the rhythm of the Olympics."
Foo Kun was the only Mauritian player in the Olympic badminton competition. The world No. 108 had not dreamed to beat Lu before the competition, saying "for me the success was from qualifying. The plan was to get through the first round but I face Lu Lan."
Lu will face Anna Rice from Canada for the next round. Rice said Sunday after her victory against Eva Lee from the United States that "all the pressure will be on her (Lu Lan) side. She might be a lit shaky on the court, and I will challenge her."
A total of 47 players are competing in the women's singles. China has the world's No. 1 Xie Xingfang, No. 2 Lu Lan and No. 7 Zhang Ning for the discipline.
(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2008)