Lee Chong Wei (Chinese: 李宗伟; pinyin: Lǐ Zōngwěi; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lí Chong-úi; born 21 October 1982) is a Malaysian former professional badminton player.

[9] He was appointed as Malaysia's chef de mission for the 2020 Summer Olympics,[10] but skipped the event due to his health concerns.

[30] Lee criticised the chief coach, Yap Kim Hock for treating him indifferently and putting pressure on him before the world championships.

[46] His coach, Misbun Sidek, cited the pressure of being ranked world number one to explain Lee's recent failure to capture a title.

[47] Lee ended his last Super Series tournament of the year, the Hong Kong Open, with a sudden withdrawal due to a knee injury, conceding a walkover to Germany's Marc Zwiebler.

[54][55] However, he secured his second title of the year in the Swiss Open which was held in Basel, defeating Lin Dan in straight sets and marking his first win in the finals against the Chinese opponent outside home turf.

[58] In May, Lee helped Malaysia reach the semi-finals of the Sudirman Cup, the first in national history, despite his unbeaten record in the tournament being blown out by Lin Dan.

Lee kicked off the second half of the season with defeat by Sony Dwi Kuncoro in the world meets,[62] but went on to win the Macau Open in August.

[67] In December, Lee defended his Super Series Masters Finals title, which saw the competition played without the top badminton players in the world.

[77] In late August, Lee suffered a shock exit in another attempt for the World Championships, but was beaten by Taufik Hidayat in the quarter-finals.

Despite beating reigning World Champion Chen Jin in the semi-final, Lee once again tasted defeat at the hands of his rival, Lin Dan, in the final.

[85] However, he failed to defend the Korea Open title, the world's first ever million-dollar badminton tournament, after being beaten by Lin Dan from China in three games.

[86] In March, Lee cruised into the final of the All England Open for the third consecutive time and retained his title successfully with a convincing straight games victory over Lin Dan, and was praised by prime minister Najib Tun Razak.

[89] Despite the fact that Lee won all the matches he played during the Sudirman Cup, Malaysia's journey ended in quarterfinals, after being beaten by South Korea 2–3.

[92] In September, Lee also failed to defend his Japan Open crown after losing to China's rising star Chen Long.

Despite leading for most of the time in the third game, Lin managed to level the point and edge him narrowly by 21–19, forcing Lee to settle for silver once more.

[114] Lee ended the year with a loss in the opening match of the Super Series Master Finals and subsequently pulled out of tournament due to a thigh injury.

[135] Lee resumed play in August where he finished second for the third time at the World Championships, losing to Chen Long of China in straight sets.

[138] In October 2014, local media reported that the Badminton Association of Malaysia confirmed that one of the nation's top shuttlers tested positive for dexamethasone after urine samples were taken during the World Championships in late August.

[142] On 11 November 2014, the Badminton World Federation confirmed that Lee was temporarily suspended from competing due to an apparent anti-doping regulation violation.

[159] At the Thomas Cup in May, Malaysia lost to eventual winners Denmark in the semi-finals despite Lee winning all the matches he contested in the tournament.

[163] In the men's singles competition he made it to the final, defeating his longtime rival Lin Dan in the semifinals in a dominating performance.

[171] Lee lost to Lin Dan for two consecutive tournaments, the first in the final of Malaysia Open,[172] and the second in semifinals of Badminton Asia Championships.

[175] In August, Lee was upset by Brice Leverdez in the first round of the World Championships,[176] soon after, he apologises to Malaysians for his defeat in his Twitter account but received some touching reply from the fans.

[197] His career-long rival, Lin Dan, wrote on Sina Weibo that he now has to "head into battle alone, as he no longer has a companion anymore (独自上场没人陪我了)", and shared a song titled "Don't Cry, Friend" (朋友别哭).

[229][230] On 30 August 2008, Lee was made Officer of the Order of the Defender of State (Darjah Setia Pangkuan Negeri) (DSPN), which carried the title "Dato'" by the Governor of Penang, Abdul Rahman Abbas, following his achievement at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

[231] On 6 June 2009, Lee became the second of only two recipients to date of the Order of Merit (Darjah Bakti) (DB), receiving the honour from Mizan Zainal Abidin in conjunction with His Majesty the 13th Yang di-Pertuan Agong's official birthday.

[232] On 5 July 2012, Lee was conferred the rank of Lieutenant Commander (Honorary) of the Royal Malaysian Navy Volunteer Reserve Unit.

[236] Lee was made Commander of the Order of Meritorious Service (Panglima Jasa Negara) (PJN) effective 9 September 2017, which carries the title "Datuk", by the 15th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Muhammad V in conjunction with His Majesty's official birthday.

[237][238][239] On 1 October 2021, Lee was announced as one of 10 recipients to be made a Justice of the Peace (JP) in conjunction with the 68th-birthday of the 10th Governor of Sabah, Juhar Mahiruddin.