Fierce air conditioning remained at the centre of controversy in the Asian Games badminton today but organisers rejected Chinese claims that it had been manipulated to help the South Korean hosts.
Tournament managers also said no official protest had been made over conditions in the Gyeyang Gymnasium in Incheon, despite claims by China's coach Li Yongbo.
Li blamed "man-made reasons" for Wednesday's 3-2 defeat to South Korea in the men's team final, the Shanghai Daily reported.
"We did not lose because of technique or tactics, but due to some man-made reasons. The South Koreans deliberately controlled the wind blow in the stadium and took advantage of it," Li was quoted as saying.
"When we played with tailwind, the wind was very strong, but when the wind was behind them, they shut down the air conditioning.
"Before the Games opened, they had been training in this stadium for 15 days, so they are more familiar with the stadium than us."
Tournament events manager, Chooi Weng Sheng of the Badminton Asia Confedertion, said there was no evidence of foul play.
"We have never received any official complaint from them or from the players," the Malaysian official told AFP.
"There's no evidence it happened," he added.
Chooi said the match referee would have noticed "a drastic change in the temperature of the hall" and technical staff receive an hourly reading of temperature and humidity.
"Everything was done in the proper order and it was very fair," he said.
