WOO... how exciting!! It's been a long time since we had no internal affairs for all 5 finals.
That Kim Dong Moon and Ra Kyung Min have both qualified for their respective finals beating top opponents like Candra/Halim, Alven/Luluk and Zhang/Yang (more than convincingly!!) after giving their possible 14th Mixed title a miss is prove that no matter how much you have for what it takes, you cannot defy age.
Sigh. I sincerely hope they pull through and do well in the Olympics in both wd/md while going for the mixed gold that has eluded them for a long time.
Kim/Ha has never played Cai/Fu before, so this is definitely going to be an interesting match. Would youth or experience prevail? I certainly pray for the latter.
Ra/Lee has an even head-to-head against Wei/Zhao, the Chinese pair they have the best record against. Personal bias again, but I hope Ra/Lee go all the way!! But from today's match, it's completely understandable why Li Yongbo tried so hard with all the walkovers in wd finals to have Gao/Huang move up the No.1 spot in the world rankings just so to have them face Ra/Lee in the Uber Cup without having to rest Yang/Zhang. Among the top three Chinese pairs, only Gao Ling and Huang Sui has a distinct edge over Ra Kyung Min when she is in form and not tired out by XD commitments, and like today, no other Chinese pair to drain her physically the day before. My respect goes out to Ra. Like Camilla, she is not simply fighting a Chinese pair but the whole team managed by a shrewd and strategic Li Yongbo.
That Kim Dong Moon and Ra Kyung Min have both qualified for their respective finals beating top opponents like Candra/Halim, Alven/Luluk and Zhang/Yang (more than convincingly!!) after giving their possible 14th Mixed title a miss is prove that no matter how much you have for what it takes, you cannot defy age.

Kim/Ha has never played Cai/Fu before, so this is definitely going to be an interesting match. Would youth or experience prevail? I certainly pray for the latter.

Ra/Lee has an even head-to-head against Wei/Zhao, the Chinese pair they have the best record against. Personal bias again, but I hope Ra/Lee go all the way!! But from today's match, it's completely understandable why Li Yongbo tried so hard with all the walkovers in wd finals to have Gao/Huang move up the No.1 spot in the world rankings just so to have them face Ra/Lee in the Uber Cup without having to rest Yang/Zhang. Among the top three Chinese pairs, only Gao Ling and Huang Sui has a distinct edge over Ra Kyung Min when she is in form and not tired out by XD commitments, and like today, no other Chinese pair to drain her physically the day before. My respect goes out to Ra. Like Camilla, she is not simply fighting a Chinese pair but the whole team managed by a shrewd and strategic Li Yongbo.