Double badminton Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen fell to Frenchman Alex Lanier in the 2025 BWF China Masters round of 16 on Thursday (18 September).
The Danish former World No. 1 took the first game in Shenzhen 22-20, but then lost the next two 15-21, 13-21 to the World No. 7.
Axelsen, 31, bounced back from his first-round elimination in the Hong Kong Open earlier this month, with victory over People’s Republic of China’s Wang Zhengxing 16-21, 21-17, 21-11 in the first round in Shenzhen.
However, the Paris 2024 Olympic champion is still working his way back to full fitness after six months out of the sport, and struggled with the pace of the match, which lasted 67 minutes.
Another Olympic gold medallist in China’s Chen Yufei continued her successful return from injury, beating Denmark’s Line Christophersen 21-18, 21-17.