KUALA LUMPUR: World No. 4 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik's Olympic gold medal hopes at the Paris Olympics are slowly taking shape.
Aaron-Wooi Yik are ranked No. 2 in the Race to Paris standings, and they will unlikely drop out of the top 16 or be overtaken before the cut-off in April.
Having made their Olympic debut in the 2021 Tokyo edition, where they won a bronze medal, Aaron-Wooi Yik continued their upward trajectory by clinching the World Championships crown in 2022.
Last year, Aaron-Wooi Yik won their first World Tour title at the Denmark Open and finished runners-up at the India Open, Indonesia Open and China Open.
On Friday, the Malaysians reached the semi-finals of the India Open after seeing off China's Ou Xuan Yi-Liu Yu Chen, 21-19, 21-19.
The former world champions will take on India's Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty for a place in the final today.
"It is always special to play in the Olympics. When we made our debut at the Tokyo Games, it was a dream," said Wooi Yik.
"We were underdogs but still finished on the podium.
"We have matured as a pair, and we are improving. I believe we will be better in Paris."
Aaron believes they can make a huge impact in Paris.
"We are more excited than nervous to make our second Olympic appearance.
"Of course, we must be better prepared, as everyone wants to win an Olympic medal."