Mia Blichfeldt was hugely relieved after her victory at the World Badminton Championships on Wednesday, a match during which she struggled with an injury.
Blichfeldt ultimately defeated Thailand's Supanida Katethong 21-19, 11-21, 22-20 in a dramatic match where, for a long time, it looked as though the Dane was heading for defeat.
With this three-set win, Blichfeldt advanced to the round of 16. That outcome seemed unlikely during the second set, however, when Blichfeldt was in tears over a heel injury that threatened to bring her campaign to an early end.
"Mentally, I managed to pull myself together. I was in total shock over what happened to my heel."
"I was thinking, 'No, no, no—not another injury.' I could feel a throbbing sensation in my heel. But I’ve had some trouble with my foot all week," Blichfeldt told TV 2 Sport.
Several other Danes were also in action on Wednesday, and you can find all the results here:
Gemke 2-1 Lin (13-21, 21-17, 21-11) ✅
Werge/Kolding 0-2 Delrue/Gicquel (16-21, 12-21) ❌
Bøje/Christiansen 2-1 Pranata/Faza (19-21, 21-9, 21-10) ✅
Blichfeldt 2-1 Katethong (21-19, 11-21, 22-20) ✅
Antonsen 2-1 Nguyen (21-23, 21-19, 23-21) ✅
Astrup/Skaarup 2-0 Koh/Kubo (21-16, 21-8) ✅
Christophersen 2-0 Liang (21-12, 21-15) ✅