{
  "id": 6909129,
  "title": "Fake Asian Games draw sparks confusion",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/fake-asian-games-draw-sparks-confusion",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-12T10:46:19.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/sports/badminton/2026/09/1531304/fake-asian-games-draw-sparks-confusion"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Badminton Asia has confirmed that a circulating social media post claiming to be the Asian Games men's team draw is fake. The fake draw had Malaysian fans in alarm, as Malaysia was mistakenly paired with Hong Kong in the last-16 and could potentially face top seeds China in the quarter-finals.\n\nThe real team draw will take place during a meeting of team managers on September 19, with the competition kicking off on September 20. The draw procedure for individual and team events is already outlined in the Asian Games handbook, according to Kenny Goh, BA's secretary-general.\n\nThe incorrect social media post had Malaysia seeded sixth, while the top four seeds were Indonesia, China, Taiwan and Japan. In reality, Malaysia is seeded sixth, with Indonesia, China, Taiwan and Japan as the top four seeds. If the seeding had been accurate, Malaysia might have faced one of the top four seeds in the quarter-finals, who would have received a first-round bye.\n\nFor the women's team event, China, Japan, South Korea and Japan were the top four seeds, with Malaysia seeded seventh after Thailand and Indonesia. The fake draw only served to confuse fans, as the seedings were incorrect. Once the team events conclude on October 24, the individual draw will be held on the same day.",
  "summary": "KUALA LUMPUR: Badminton Asia (BA) has confirmed that the so-called Asian Games men's team draw circulating on social media is fake.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Channel News Asia",
        "title": "20 Team Singapore athletes to compete in nine sports at Asian Para Games in Japan",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/20-team-singapore-athletes-to-compete-in-nine-sports-at-asian-para",
        "published": "2026-09-12T06:23:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "New Straits Times",
        "title": "BAM mulls gold bonus to end 20-year Asian Games drought",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/bam-mulls-gold-bonus-to-end-20-year-asian-games-drought",
        "published": "2026-09-12T09:37:51.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Mainichi",
        "title": "Asian Games: Japanese head coach helps Taiwan shoot for basketball medal",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/asian-games-japanese-head-coach-helps-taiwan-shoot-for-basketball",
        "published": "2026-09-12T10:00:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}