Loh Kean Yew is the first Singaporean to be nominated for BWF Male Player of the Year award

SINGAPORE: World No. 3 Loh Kean Yew has another accolade to his name after becoming the first Singaporean to be nominated for the annual Badminton World Federation (BWF) Player of the Year awards for 2022.

This is the first time Loh, the 2021 world champion, has been shortlisted for the Male Player of the Year award, joining Denmark’s reigning world champion and world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen and Malaysia’s Asian champion and world No. 2 Lee Zii Jia on the shortlist.

The BWF released its awards shortlist on Monday (Nov 28) and shared that the nominees were selected based on performances in the 2021 and 2022 seasons from Nov 1, 2021 to Oct 31, 2022.

The winner will be named at the BWF World Tour Finals gala dinner in Bangkok on Dec 5, just before the season-ending Dec 7 to 11 World Tour Finals, which Loh has qualified for.

This year’s World Tour Finals marks the first time Loh will appear at the prestigious season-ender, making him the first Singaporean man to compete in the tournament, which features the current top-eight players in the singles and doubles categories.

Axelsen is the favourite to win the award after clinching seven BWF World Tour Titles, including last year’s World Tour Finals.

But Loh cheekily tweeted that he will “still vote for (himself) no matter what the outcome”.

The badminton star was also named Sportsman of the Year for the first time at the annual Singapore Sports Awards ceremony earlier this month.