KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's top women's singles shuttler Goh Jin Wei has bowed out of the Paris Olympics after failing to clear the group stage.
The 24-year-old gave South Korea's world No. 17 Kim Ga Eun a run for her money before going down 21-17, 20-22, 23-21 in an energy-sapping Group H match at Porte de la Chapelle today.
In the nail-biting contest, Jin Wei fought back valiantly from 18-15 down before holding two match points at 20-18, but it was Ga Eun who held her nerves to emerge victorious.
The defeat saw world No. 32 Jin Wei settle for the second spot in the three-woman pool, paving the way for Ga Eun to qualify for the last-16 as group winner.
The other competitor is South Africa's Johanita Scholtz, who lost both her matches.
To the independent shuttler's credit, it was still a commendable Olympic debut for Jin Wei despite not having her personal coach, Nova Armada, by her side due to the restricted number of Games accreditations for contingent officials.