Terry Hee Yong Kai (Chinese: 許永凱; born 6 July 1995) is a Singaporean badminton player.[5] In mixed doubles with Jessica Tan, Hee won his first World Tour title at the 2022 India Open.[6] Hee together with Jessica Tan also won the gold medal in the mixed doubles event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, a first for Singapore in that discipline at the Games. Terry Hee and his wife Jessica Tan were nominated for the Straits Times Singaporean of the Year Award 2022.[7]
Hee opened the 2022 season by winning the mixed doubles title at the India Open partnering Jessica Tan.[6] The duo later captured their second World Tour title of the year by winning the Orléans Masters.[13]
In May 2022, Hee competed at the 2021 SEA Games. He won the bronze medals in the men's team and doubles events.[14][15]
Hee and Tan after winning the mixed doubles final at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England
At the 2022 Commonwealth Games in August, Hee was part of the Singaporean team who won the bronze medal in the mixed team events as the Singaporean team defeated England 3–0 at the bronze medal playoff.[16][17] Hee had also competed at the individual mixed doubles event with his wife, Tan. They won a historic gold medal and Singapore's first Commonwealth Games badminton mixed doubles gold after beating England's Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith in the final, with a score of 21–16, 21–15 in straight sets.[18]
Personal life
Hee married fellow Singaporean shuttler Jessica Tan in October, 2021. They had often partnered at mixed doubles tournaments since the start of Hee's professional career.[19] Their victory at the 2021 Czech Open, defeating Russians Lev Barinov and Anastasiia Boiarun, was their first tournament as a married duo.[19] They were made HSBC Life Singapore's first brand ambassadors in 2023.
Awards and nominations
Hee and Jessica Tan were nominated for the 2022 ST Athlete of the Year Award.[20] They were also conferred the Team of the Year (Event) award in the Singapore Sports Awards 2023 by the Singapore National Olympic Council.[21]
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[22] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tours are divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.[23]
^Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
