KUALA LUMPUR: Known for her badminton prowess and beauty, Goh Liu Ying will no longer grace the court after the Malaysia Open in January.
After an illustrious career spanning more than two decades since her junior days, the 33-year-old mixed doubles player yesterday confirmed that the Super 1000 tournament will be her swan song.
Together with her former partner, Chan Peng Soon, Liu Ying reached a career-high world No 3 on the BWF world rankings.
The pair's greatest achievement was winning silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics, apart from winning the 2010 Asian Championships and the Commonwealth Games, as well as several Super Series and World Tour titles.
The Melaka shuttler said: "The Malaysia Open in January will be my last tournament. That will be the end.
"I will surely miss everything, but I have had a wonderful and meaningful career.
"Winning the Olympic silver in Rio is surely my greatest moment, but qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics is not far behind.
"Being the flag bearer for my country, in a time when the world was plagued by the pandemic, was truly special for me."
On whether she would still contribute to the local badminton scene after retirement, Liu Ying, who is also into modelling, added: "I think so, but perhaps in a different capacity. I might look into the junior level or grassroots."
Liu Ying also expressed her concern with the current state of the national mixed doubles department and hopes to see them bounce back soon.
"It's a little sad because, in the past, the national mixed doubles department was very consistent.
"At any tournament, you would have at least three to five national pairs playing.
"But now, there really isn't anyone left. Peck Yen Wei just quit, and the remaining pairs haven't really made an impact.
"I really hope things will improve," said Liu Ying, who refused to reveal who her partner would be at the Malaysia Open.
One thing for sure is it has to be a big name for the duo to have enough ranking points to qualify for the Super 1000 event.
At the moment, Peng Soon-Liu Ying, although no longer playing together, are still ranked No 19 in the world.