Datuk Lee Chong Wei (; born 21 October 1982) is a Malaysian former badminton player. As a singles player, Lee was ranked first worldwide for 349 weeks, including a 199-week streak from 21 August 2008 to 14 June 2012. He is the fifth Malaysian player after Foo Kok Keong, Rashid Sidek, Roslin Hashim and Wong Choong Hann to achieve such a ranking (since official rankings were first kept in the 1980s), and is the only Malaysian shuttler who has held the number one ranking for more than a year. Lee is a triple silver medalist at the Olympic Games, and the sixth Malaysian to win an Olympic medal. He won his first silver medal in 2008, also the first time a Malaysian had reached the finals in the men's singles event. This achievement earned him the title Datuk, and led to then Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak describing him as national hero. He repeated the achievement twice more in 2012 and 2016, thus making him the most successful Malaysian Olympian in history. On 13 June 2019, Lee announced his retirement after struggling to return to full fitness following a nose cancer diagnosis. He was appointed as Malaysia's chef de mission for the 2020 Summer Olympics, but skipped the event due to his health concerns. He retained his role, albeit serving it virtually. Early life Lee was born in Bagan Serai, Perak, into a Malaysian Chinese family, to Lee Ah Chai and Khor Kim Choi. In his early years, he favoured basketball, however his mother soon banned him from the game due to the searing heat of the outdoor basketball court. Lee began to learn badminton at the age of 11, when his father, who liked to play the game, brought him to the badminton hall. He attracted the attention of local coach Teh Peng Huat, who asked Lee's father if he could take him as a student. After receiving his father's consent, Teh began to train Lee after school. Discovered by Misbun Sidek, he was drafted into the national squad in 2000 when he was seventeen years old. Career 2002–2007 Lee picked up only one minor title during the 2002 and 2003 seasons. He reached his first final of a major tournament at the 2003 Malaysia Open where he was defeated by Chen Hong of China. Lee then secured two titles in 2004, the Malaysia Open and the Chinese Taipei