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All-England: Sun Jun, Rasmussen Pull Out

** This NEW SHUTTLENWS report is presented by YANG YANG Badminton Products and their Western USA agents BADMINTON ALLEY. **

March 9, 1999 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - World Grand Prix Finals men's singles champion Sun Jun of China and current world men's singles titleholder Peter Rasmussen of Denmark have withdrawn from the one hundredth All-England Open badminton championships that starts in earnest tomorrow at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England.

Sun who had been seeded a lowly seventh despite his big victory two weeks ago is reportedly suffering from extreme fatigue, while Rasmussen injured a calf muscle last week at the Swedish Open.

Two other top men's singles players, Yong Hock Kin and Ong Ewe Hock, both from Malaysia, had pulled out earlier. Yong is attending to his family who reside in an area of Malaysia where there is an epidemic of encephalitis, while Ong is still recovering from a leg infection.

Also, the American entries - Ardy Wiranata, Kevin Han, Mark Manha and Howard Bach, did not make the trip to Birmingham and their places in the competition have been assigned to various players from the qualifying pool.

(mc/ds)

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