At the London 2012 Olympics, a women’s doubles badminton match between China and South Korea caused controversy when the four players were disqualified for deliberately underperforming.

This incident, which marred the spirit of the games, saw the players serving into the net and hitting shots out of bounds in a blatant effort to manipulate the draw for the knockout stage. The sound of the shuttlecocks was drowned out by boos from the spectators and the commentators called the game a disgrace.

The match referee Torsten Berg talks to Sean Allsop about what went down on the court that day. An Audio Always production.

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(Photo: Tournament referee Torsten Berg speaks to players from China and South Korea during their women's doubles match at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Credit: Reuters/Bazuki Muhammad)