Chinese Taipei badminton players Cheng Wen Hsing/Chien Yu Chin, who are competing at the 11th Sudirman Cup, encouraged the survivors of last year's Sichuan earthquake to strive for a better life as China marked the first anniversary on Tuesday of the deadly disaster.

"We should not forget those who died in the May 12 earthquake," said Chien. "And the survivors should know that we all care about them."

Earlier, Cheng and Chien downed Weny Rahmawati/Elisa Chanteur of France 21-9, 21-12 as Chinese Taipei beat France 4-1 in a Group2A match. The win gave Chinese Taipei a playoff berth and if they win the next match, with which they may qualify to Group 1.

"We are not thinking about what will happen," said Cheng. "This is a team work and we just tried our best. It will be good if we promote to the Group 1."

An 8.0-magnitude quake hit southwest China's Sichuan Province on May 12 last year, leaving 68,712 people dead and another 17,921 missing.