BEIJING Rockville native Bob Malaythong was a part of history Tuesday morning during the opening round of the Olympic mens doubles badminton tournament.

When Malaythong and Howard Bach defeated South Africas Chris and Roelof Dednam 21-10, 21-6, they became the first American team to advance to the quarterfinals.

Since badminton became an official Olympic sport in 1992, the United States has failed to win a medal.

We play better as the underdogs; today we were the favorites so there was a lot of pressure on us to win, Malaythong said. We did it, but we just got by.

Next up for Malaythong and Bach is a match against the Chinese team of Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng (the tournaments second seed) today.

• 
• Comment