Denmark's Viktor Axelsen received royal approval after SLOT168 winning badminton gold on Monday (Aug 2) to break Asia's stranglehold, then warned he intends to reign over the sport for some time to come.
Axelsen beat China's defending champion Chen Long 21-15, 21-12 in the men's singles final, becoming the first non-Asian to claim the title since 1996.
The world number two sobbed in disbelief after Chen hit the final shot long, then regained his composure to take a courtside phone call from Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik.
"He just told me that it was amazing to see and he knows that I've worked really hard for this and big congrats," said Axelsen, who did not lose a single game in Tokyo.
"Obviously it means a lot to me."
Axelsen took control of the match early and never loosened his grip, constantly turning the screw to give world number six Chen few opportunities.
The Dane won bronze at the 2016 Rio Games - losing to Chen in the semi-finals - and he said the experience made him "really hungry to do even better" in Tokyo.
He achieved that with a series of dominant performances, but warned he can still improve.
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