Rumors surface online: Is Chen Long about to officially announce his retirement? Recently, he was spotted coaching the Chinese national badminton team as an expert.

On February 11, Beijing time, domestic media reported that China's renowned men's singles badminton player Chen Long will officially announce his retirement the day after tomorrow. The news quickly drew widespread attention from fans.

Chen Long is currently the top men's singles badminton player in China's national team. He won the gold medal at the Rio Olympics and a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, cementing his status as one of the world's finest athletes today. Originally, Chen Long had planned to retire after the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, but the event was postponed until 2023. Ultimately, Chen Long decided to step down from the national team.

Chen Long was last seen in public in January of this year, during the Chinese national badminton team's training camp in Lingshui, Hainan. At the time, he joined the national squad as part of an expert panel to oversee and guide the men’s singles training sessions. Although Chen is no longer training with the national team, he has never officially announced his retirement. As a result, there’s still no official word on whether he’s truly stepping away from competitive play—leaving fans eagerly anticipating his possible return to the court.

Currently, the Chinese men's singles badminton team is facing significant challenges. They performed poorly in all four high-level open tournaments held earlier this year in January, failing to reach the finals even once. Fans naturally hope that Chen Long can make a comeback to lead the team out of its current slump. However, time waits for no one, and Chen Long is no longer at his peak form. While we may still hold onto the wishful belief in his return, realistically, it’s becoming increasingly unlikely. Moreover, Chen Long has already lost all his ranking points on the Badminton World Federation’s leaderboard, making it virtually impossible for him to compete in future tournaments.

We'll continue to follow Chen Long's future path closely. Whether or not he retires, we’re confident he’ll still contribute his strength to the Chinese national men’s singles team. Wishing him all the best in the next chapter of his life!