Carolina Marín crowned world champion for the third time

A sporting legend and one of the best sportswomen in history. No adjective can quite describe what Carolina Marín has achieved. Today, the Huelva-born badminton ace became the first woman to have be crowned world champions three times after she beat India's Pusarla Sindhu (21-19 and 21-10) in Nanjing. Carolina, aged just 25 años, is now the best female badminton player the world has ever seen.

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Pushed all the way in the first set

She didn't go into the 2018 BWF World Championships - and she was fully aware of that, but she played an almost flawless tournament just when it mattered most. The magnificent Pusarla Sindhu, ranked number three in the world, was a noble rival in a final in which was a battle of wits as much as it was a physical test. Sindhu attempted to allay the onslaught with a series of block shots, and took the longest time possible between points to regain her composure - for which she was  served a penalty. Marín looked more nervous than usual but her anxieties were soothed by coach Fernando Rivas, who tried to give her encouragent and solutions in the areas where Sindhu doing the most damage.

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Second wind

The first set ended 21-19, setting the Spanish player up for a second and decisive set in which she produced her finest moments on court. Soon it was apparent that it was Sindhu who could see the game ebbing away from her as the scoreboard registered 10-2. It was also clear that Carolina now had an answer for all of the difficulties she had suffered in the first set as it ended 21-10.

Moments after the winning point, Carolina broke down in tears on court, in front of 10,000 Chinese specators. Fernando Rivas and Anders Thomsen looked on half in disbelief on realization that their star pupil had done something never achieved before - three-time world champion, Carolina is now a sporting legend.