TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwanese twins Lee Fang-jen (李芳任) and Lee Fang-chih (李芳至) won gold in the men's doubles at the Canada Open badminton competition on Sunday.

They faced off against Chang Ko-chi (張課琦) and Po Li-wei (柏禮維), making it an all-Taiwan final, and rallied to defeat Chang and Po in two closely fought matches, winning by a score of 21-19, 21-19 in Markham, Ontario, per CNA.

Twins are rare in elite badminton competitions, as the Lee brothers first attracted attention at the age of 18, winning the Sydney International Badminton Championship. Since then, the Lee brothers have consistently achieved runner-up finishes in the Badminton World Federation Super 300 competitions.

Fortunately, the brothers found better rhythm and pacing in the finals. Coach Lee Sung-yuan (李松遠) said the win improves their world ranking and improves their chances of competing in next year's Asian Games.

"The world rankings for Taiwanese men's doubles are very close, and there is lots of healthy competition," said Lee.

Currently, the top-ranked Taiwanese men's doubles team is Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), who are ranked 18th in the world, followed by Lee Jhe-huei (李哲輝) and Yang Po-hsuan (楊博軒), who are ranked 20th, and the twin brothers Lee (李), who are ranked 22nd.

In elementary school, badminton was only a casual interest for the brothers. They began formal training in junior high school and settled as a men's doubles team after entering high school.