Spain's Carolina Marin moved into the Olympic badminton semifinals on Saturday and said it had been a long journey back since missing the Tokyo Games with a serious knee injury.
Marin, the 2016 women's singles champion, beat Japan's Aya Ohori 21-13, 21-14 at La Chapelle Arena to set up a final-four showdown with China's He Bingjiao.
Marin was a hot favourite for the title at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago until she suffered a cruciate ligament knee tear just months before the tournament.
That kept her out for a year and came just two years after she ruptured the ligament in her other knee – an injury that sidelined her for eight months of 2019.
Marin said it "means a lot" to be back in medal contention on the Olympic stage.
"Three years ago, I couldn't think that I would reach a semifinal here in Paris," she said.
"The journey has been a long way but I am here and I feel really proud of myself."
South Korea's world No 1 An Se-young also progressed with a 15-21, 21-17, 21-8 win over Japan's two-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi.
An's semifinal opponent will be Indonesia's Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, who beat Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon 25-23, 21-9.
Marin beat eighth seed Ohori in 52 minutes and looked in control of their match from the off.
"I'm proud of myself because the day before yesterday I had a difficult match," said the 31-year-old.
"Today from the beginning I wanted to keep the focus on the things that I want to improve."
China's He advanced to the semifinals after beating defending Olympic champion Chen Yufei.
The sixth seed shocked her countrywoman with a 21-16, 21-17 win and said she felt "calm" throughout the match.
"I beat an Olympic champion today and I'm facing another one tomorrow," He said of her semifinal against Marin.
"I hope tomorrow will be a good match for both of us."