In Lin Dan's childhood memories, his mother often liked to dress him up like a girl. At that time, Lin Dan was chubby, with long hair that nearly covered his ears. His cheeks were often painted red by his mother, and wearing a red outfit, he looked just like a little girl. In the early 1980s, learning the electronic piano became a trend across the country. At that time, Lin Dan was in preschool, and most of his classmates were taking piano lessons with their parents. Lin Dan was no exception.
His mother bought him a Casio electronic piano, which cost between one and two hundred yuan, a significant expense at the time. However, this expensive instrument failed to capture young Lin Dan's attention. Sitting in front of the piano every day, he merely moved his fingers mechanically, which made the active boy feel suffocated. Often, after playing for just a short while, he wanted to get up from the chair and wander around. As a result, he refused to practice after just one week. Both of Lin Dan's parents were sports enthusiasts. His father loved table tennis and volleyball, while his mother was skilled in swimming and basketball, frequently representing Shanghang County in competitions in Longyan. Thinking that if her son didn't want to play the piano, he should do something else, she decided to involve him in sports.
So, whenever her mother played basketball, she would bring Lin Dan along, letting him run and play on the court by himself. At that time, the Shanghang County Gymnasium had a junior amateur badminton training class, and many of Lin Dan's friends were practicing there.
One day, Lin Dan went to the gymnasium with his friends and saw badminton for the first time. Watching the children run back and forth, swinging rackets, and catching the shuttlecock, Lin Dan was instantly captivated, as if he had found something that felt right. He was five years old that year. Soon, he joined the training class. Since it was an amateur class, the sessions were often more about playing than serious training. The children practiced basic skills like grip, swing, and jump rope together, and Lin Dan often sneaked off to play games with his friends when the coach wasn't looking. Those days were filled with joy and carefree happiness. However, Even at such a young age, Lin Dan already displayed a competitive spirit and a strong sense of self-esteem.
