MALAYSIAN OPEN: TOP PLAYERS OPT OUT

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July 7, 1997 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - Newly crowned men's singles world champion Peter Rasmussen of Denmark has withdrawn his name from the list of entries at the Malaysian Open scheduled for July 9-13 at Kota Kinabalu. Rasmussen is reported to be suffering from a training injury.

1996 Olympic men's singles gold medalist Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen, also of Denmark, is likewise giving the Malaysian Open a bye. Hoyer did not enter his name for the tournament in Kota Kinabalu and is currently in training at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes, England.

In a late development, Dong Jiong, one of China's heroes in their successful defense of the world mixed team championship in Glasgow in May and the 1996 Olympic men's singles silver medalist, also withdrew from the tournament due to injury.

Men's doubles world champions Sigit Budiarto and Indra Wijaya of Indonesia are also among the notables who will be absent from the Malaysian Open. And the top Malaysian duo of Cheah Soon Kit and Yap Kim Hock, the 1996 Olympic silver medalists and also the 1997 world championships silver medalists behind Sigit and Wijaya, are not competing as a pair. Yap is said to be recovering from injury, and the Malaysians have temporarily paired Cheah with Chew Choon Eng.

With the three top men's singles names absent from the Malaysian Open, Joko Suprianto of Indonesia, the 1993 world champion, heads the seeds for the men's singles event. Defending champion Ong Ewe Hock of Malaysia is seeded second, with the rising Danish star Peter Gade-Christensen seeded third. Malaysian veteran Rashid Sidek is the fourth seed.

In men's doubles, 1996 Olympic gold medalists Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky of Indonesia are the top seeds. Bronze medalists Denny Kantono and Antonius Iriantho are the second seeds.

Women's singles world champion Ye Zhaoying of China is the top seed in her event followed by Susi Susanti of Indonesia.

The world champion pair of Ge Fei and Gu Jun from China is the top pick in women's doubles, and another world champion pair from China, Liu Yong and Ge Fei, tops the entries in the mixed doubles event.

(migrossman)