The Thomas Cup, sometimes called the World Men's Team Championships, is an international badminton competition among teams representing member nations of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), the sport's global governing body. The championships have been conducted every two years since the 1982 tournament, amended from being conducted every three years since the first tournament held in 1948-1949.

The final phase of the tournament involves twelve teams competing at venues within a host nation and is played concurrently with the final phase of the world women's team championships, the Uber Cup ( first held in 1956-1957). Since 1984 the two competitions have been held jointly at the various stages of play.

Of the twenty-six Thomas Cup tournaments held since 1948-1949, only three nations have won the title. Indonesia is the most successful team, having won the tournament thirteen times. The current cup holder, China, which did not begin to compete until the 1982 series, follows Indonesia with eight titles, while Malaysia has won five titles. Thomas Cup and, to a lesser extent, Uber Cup are the world's "biggest" and most prestigious regularly held badminton events in terms of player and fan interest, trumping major tournaments for individual competitors such as the venerable All-England Championships, the BWF World Championships, and even the badminton competitions at the Olympic Games.

The final phase of the most recent edition of Thomas Cup in 2010 was contested in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 2012 tournament will be held in Wuhan, China from May 20–27, 2012.^[1]

History[link]

First Thomas Cup[link]

The Thomas Cup competition was the idea of Sir George Alan Thomas, a highly successful English badminton player of the early 1900's, who was inspired by tennis's Davis Cup, and football's (soccer's) World Cup first held in 1930. His idea was well received at the general meeting of the International Badminton Federation (now Badminton World Federation) in 1939.^[2][3]

In the same year, Sir George presented the Thomas Cup, officially known as The International Badminton Championship Challenge Cup, produced by Atkin Bros of London at a cost of US$40,000. The Cup stands 28 inches high and 16 inches across at its widest, and consists of three parts: a plinth (pedestal), a bowl, and a lid with player figure ^[3][4].

The first tournament was originally planned for 1941-1942 (badminton seasons in the northern hemisphere traditionally ran from the autumn of one calendar year to the spring of the next), but was delayed when World War II exploded across the continents. Sir George's dream was finally realized in 1948-1949 when ten national teams participated in the first Thomas Cup competition. Three qualifying zones were established: Pan America, Europe, and the Pacific; though Malaya (now Malaysia) was the only Pacific zone participant. In a format that would last until 1984, all ties (matches between nations) would consist of nine individual matches; the victorious nation needing to win at least five of these contests. The top two singles players for each side faced both of the top two players for the opposite side, accounting for four matches. A fifth singles match took place between the third ranked singles players for each team. Finally, two doubles pairings for each side played both of the doubles pairings for the opposite side, accounting for four more matches. Each tie was normally contested over two days, four matches on the first day and five on the next.The United States and Denmark won their respective zone qualifications and thus joined Malaya for the inter-zone ties.

The inter-zone ties were held in the United Kingdom. As the tournament used a knockout (single elimination) system, rather than a round-robin system, one country, Denmark, was given a bye in the first round. Malaya defeated the USA 6–3 in a highly competitive match played in Glasgow, Scotland (curiously, none of the players on either side had previously seen any of the players on the other side play). Of note, this tie marked the first of only three ever matches between the USA's Dave Freeman and Malaya's Wong Peng Soon the two greatest singles players of the early post-war period. In the final round held in Preston, England, Malaya beat Denmark 8–1 and became the first nation to win a Thomas Cup^[5].

Development[link]

During the next several Thomas Cup competitions the number of participating nations grew and a fourth qualifying zone was added. The former Pacific zone was converted into Asian and Australasian zones for the 1954-1955 tournament. Beginning with the second tournament in 1951-1952, zone winners contested to determine a challenger for the reigning champion nation. Until 1964 the Cup-holding nation always hosted these inter-zone ties but was exempt from them, and from the earlier intra-zone matches, needing only to defend its title, at home, in a single, conclusive challenge round tie.

With veterans such as Wong Peng Soon. Ooi Teik Hock, and Ong Poh Lim leading the way Malaya comfortably retained the Cup in Singapore against the USA (7–2) in 1952 and Denmark (8–1) in 1955. Malaya's reign, however, was ended in 1958 (3 matches to 6) by upstart Indonesia led by Ferry Sonneville and Tan Joe Hok. Indonesia successfully defended its title in 1961 against a young team from Thailand which had surprised Denmark in the inter-zone final.^[6]

Amid some complaints of home court advantage (and "home climate" advantage as far as the Europeans were concerned), a rules change effective in 1964 prevented the reigning champion nation from defending the Cup at home twice in succession. The challenge round played in Tokyo, Japan that year was nonetheless controversial because the Danish challengers were barracked and severely harassed during play by young Indonesian fans. A narrow 5–4 Indonesian victory was upheld by the IBF (BWF) over Danish protest. When the challenge round returned to Jakarta in 1967 a resurgent Malaysia led Indonesia 4–3 (despite the spectacular debut of Indonesia's young Rudy Hartono) when crowd interference during the eighth match prompted tournament referee Herbert Scheele to halt play. When Indonesia rejected an IBF (BWF) decision to resume the contest in New Zealand, Malaysia was awarded the outstanding matches (6–3) and with them the Thomas Cup.^[7]

After 1967 the IBF (BWF) further reduced the advantages accorded to the defending champion by eliminating the old challenge round system. Instead, the Cup defender would receive a bye only to an inter-zone semifinal berth and then have to earn its way into the decisive final match. This change, however, proved to be little obstacle for a rampant Indonesia. With a cadre of talented players including Hartono and doubles wizards such as Tjun Tjun and Christian Hadinata, Indonesia dominated Thomas Cup competition throughout the seventies. Its successful effort to regain the cup in 1969-1970 was a struggle, but in the competitions ending in 1973, 1976, and 1979 Indonesia swept its ties by winning a remarkable 51 of 54 individual matches.^[8]

In 1982, however, China burst onto the scene as a new member of the IBF (BWF). Having long before developed players as good as, or better than, any in the world (especially in singles), China defeated Indonesia in a classic 5–4 final in London. Thus began an era continuing to the present which has seen either China or Indonesia capture or retain the Cup. The pattern has been broken only once, by Malaysia in 1992.

Revised format[link]

In the early 1980's the IBF (BWF) revamped the formats of both Thomas Cup and the women's world team championship, the Uber Cup. Starting in 1984 they were held concurrently, every two years not three, with equivalent phases of the two competitions held at the same venues and times. Ties at all stages of the Thomas Cup were trimmed from nine matches to five, played in one day not two. Lineups continued to consist of three singles players and two doubles teams, but each now played a single match against the opposing team's counterpart.

Qualification[link]

The old knockout (single elimination) zone qualification system in which each tie was played at a separate venue and time was eliminated. Instead, common qualifying venues brought many teams together to contend in group round-robin ties followed by playoffs between group leaders. As few as one or as many as three teams from a given venue (depending on the previously assessed strength of its field) would qualify for the final phase of the competition which until 2004 was limited to eight teams. The number of qualifying venues prior to 2004 varied between two and four and their sites basically reflected the long existent loci of badminton strength in the Far East and (to a lesser extent) in Europe (see chart below).

The European qualifying venue usually hosted the greatest number of teams and to streamline play and create more competitive ties, a two tiered system was eventually instituted there. Weaker badminton nations played-off in groups for the right to contest with the stronger national teams. To have an easier road to the inter-zone competition strong Asian teams sometimes competed outside of their "natural" qualification venue. Rising power South Korea, for example, won qualifications held in North America in 1986 and in 1988.

Below shows the qualification slots in tournament history:

Final tournament[link]

From 1984 through 2002 the final phase of Thomas Cup competition brought eight competing teams together. These included the defending champion nation and the host nation exempt from earlier qualification ties. The format of this final phase largely mirrored that of the qualifying venues. The eight teams were divided into pools or groups of four. Round-robin play within each group determined first and second place group finishers who then advanced to the semifinals. Each semifinal tie pitted the top finisher in one group against the second place finisher in the other, with the winners proceeding to the championship match. A playoff for third place between losing semifinalists was instituted in 1984 but was dropped in 1990.

In 2004 The BWF increased the number of Thomas Cup qualifying venues to five, one for each of five regional confederations (Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania, and Pan America) that it had established. It also increased the number of teams qualifying for the final phase of competition to twelve. While all confederations were guaranteed to send at least one qualifier to the final phase, strong regions such as Asia might send several (see chart above). At the finals the twelve qualifying teams were divided into four groups of three teams with round-robin play within each group. Round-robin winners were then placed in separate quarter-final berths of a knockout (single elimination) tournament to await opponents determined by matches between the second place finisher of one group and the third place finisher of another. The draw was played out and the winner of this tournament within a tournament became the Thomas Cup champion.

Results[link]

Thomas Cup summaries[link]

1949 - 1982[link]

Year[9]	Host		Final
			Winner	Score	Runner-up
1949 Details	Preston, England		Malaya	8–1	Denmark
1952 Details	Singapore		Malaya	7–2	United States
1955 Details	Singapore		Malaya	8–1	Denmark
1958 Details	Singapore		Indonesia	6–3	Malaya
1961 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		Indonesia	6–3	Thailand
1964 Details	Tokyo, Japan		Indonesia	5–4	Denmark
1967 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		Malaysia	6–3	Indonesia
1970 Details	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		Indonesia	7–2	Malaysia
1973 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		Indonesia	8–1	Denmark
1976 Details	Bangkok, Thailand		Indonesia	9–0	Malaysia
1979 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		Indonesia	9–0	Denmark
1982 Details	London, England		China	5–4	Indonesia

1984 - 1988[link]

Year	Host		Final				Third Place
			Winner	Score	Runner-up		Third Place	Score	Fourth Place
1984 Details	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		Indonesia	3–2	China		England	3–2	Korea
1986 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		China	3–2	Indonesia		Malaysia	3–2	Denmark
1988 Details	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		China	4–1	Malaysia		Indonesia	5–0	Denmark

1990 onwards[link]

Year	Host		Final				Semi-finalists
			Winner	Score	Runner-up
1990 Details	Tokyo, Japan		China	4–1	Malaysia		Denmark	Indonesia
1992 Details	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		Malaysia	3–2	Indonesia		China	Korea
1994 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		Indonesia	3–0	Malaysia		Korea	China
1996 Details	Hong Kong		Indonesia	5–0	Denmark		China	Korea
1998 Details	Hong Kong, China SAR		Indonesia	3–2	Malaysia		Denmark	China
2000 Details	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		Indonesia	3–0	China		Korea	Denmark
2002 Details	Guangzhou, China		Indonesia	3–2	Malaysia		Denmark	China
2004 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		China	3–1	Denmark		Korea	Indonesia
2006 Details	Sendai and Tokyo, Japan		China	3–0	Denmark		Indonesia	Malaysia
2008 Details	Jakarta, Indonesia		China	3–1	Korea		Malaysia	Indonesia
2010 Details	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		China	3–0	Indonesia		Malaysia	Japan
2012 Details	Wuhan, China		China	3–0	Korea		Japan	Denmark

Successful national teams[link]

Only three nations, Malaysia (formerly Malaya), Indonesia, and China have ever held the Thomas Cup. Curiously each of them won the first Thomas Cup competition that it entered: Malaya, the initial contest in 1949; Indonesia, the 1958 contest against Malaya; and China, the 1982 contest over Indonesia.

Indonesia leads in total titles with thirteen. It won four consecutive titles from 1970 through 1979 and five consecutive titles from 1994 through 2002. Indonesia's ten year reign as champions was ended by the resurgence of China in 2004 when the Chinese won the title in Jakarta. Indonesia has played in the decisive final tie on eighteen occasions. Since the Thomas Cup format was overhauled in 1984, it has never failed to place among the top four teams.

China has captured the Cup on nine occasions including the last five in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2012. It has contested the final tie eleven times and, like Indonesia, has never failed to place among the top four teams. China has won more titles than other countries since entering the Thomas Cup competition for the first time in 1982.

Malaysia has won five times, the last being in 1992. It has played in the final tie on thirteen occasions. Since the format change in 1984 it has reached the "final four" nine of thirteen times.

Despite its small population, Denmark has traditionally been Europe's strongest power in men's badminton and the strongest badminton nation not to have captured the Thomas Cup. The only European nation to have played in the final tie, it has finished second eight times spanning from the first competition in 1949 to the 2006 tournament. The USA, a power in the early days of international badminton (especially in women's competition), finished second to Malaya in 1952 but thereafter steadily fell behind the leading badminton nations. Thailand, with a king who promoted the sport, produced outstanding players at the time of its run to the final in 1961, and for some years after that, but has since descended to a lower rung on the international ladder.

Among all the other contending nations, South Korea has the best record. Rising to prominence in the 1980's, and especially strong in doubles, it had reached the "final four" six times before finally reaching the "final two" in 2008 to become the runner-up. Japan produced highly competitive teams in the late 1960's and the 1970's as its women were winning Uber Cup championships. Both its men and its women have fallen back since. India nearly reached the final twice in the 1950's. Despite some fine individual players it has lacked the depth, particularly in doubles, to seriously contend for the Cup. In Europe, England and Sweden have usually joined Denmark in advancing to the final phase of Thomas Cup competition since 1984. England, traditionally more successful in women's play than in men's, had its best showing in 1984 with a third place finish. Sweden, whose greatest badminton success spanned from the late 1960's to the mid 1980's, has yet to advance to the semifinal round of Thomas Cup's final phase.

Below is the list of seven nations that have finished in the top two in Thomas Cup.

Team	Champions	Runners-up
Indonesia	13 (1958, 1961*, 1964, 1970, 1973*, 1976, 1979*, 1984, 1994*, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002)	5 (1967*, 1982, 1986*, 1992, 2010)
China	9 (1982, 1986, 1988, 1990, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012*)	2 (1984, 2000)
Malaysia**	5 (1949, 1952, 1955, 1967, 1992* )	8 (1958, 1970*, 1976, 1988*, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002)
Denmark		8 (1949, 1955, 1964, 1973, 1979, 1996, 2004, 2006)
Korea		2 (2008, 2012)
Thailand		1 (1961)
United States		1 (1952)

* = host

** = including Malaya

Team appearances at the final stages[link]

The map shows countries that have qualified at least once for the Thomas Cup finale.

As of the 2012 championship twenty-four teams have advanced to the final venue over the history of the Thomas Cup competition. Among them Denmark has reached this final stage in all twenty-six competitions (and without ever receiving a bye to it). Indonesia and China have also advanced to the final stage in each competition that they have entered. Geographically, nine Asian nations have qualified to play at the final venue. Eight European nations have done so. The United States, Canada and Peru are the only Pan American teams to have reached this stage, and New Zealand and Australia, as one might expect, have been the only teams to represent Oceania. South Africa and Nigeria have qualified from the African zone.

Below is the list of teams that have appeared in the final stage of Thomas Cup as of the 2012 tournament.

References and footnotes[link]

External links[link]

• BWF: Thomas Cup

v t e International badminton BWF Thomas Cup Uber Cup Sudirman Cup World Championships World Junior Championships World Cup World Grand Prix (defunct) Olympics Teams Africa BCA – African Championships Asia BAC – Asia Championships Europe BE – European Championships Oceania BO – Oceania Championships Americas BPA – Pan Am Championships Regional games All-Africa Games Asian Games Commonwealth Games East Asian Games Island Games Pan Arab Games Pan American Games Southeast Asian Games

Kenneth Jonassen
Personal information
Born	(1974-07-03) July 3, 1974 (age 37) Herning
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	81 kg (180 lb; 12.8 st)
Country	Denmark
Handedness	Right
Men singles
Highest Ranking	2 (April 14, 2005[1])
BWF Profile

Kenneth Jonassen (born July 3, 1974 in Herning) is a male badminton player from Denmark, who formerly had the fastest smash record in the singles competition, with a 298 km/h (185 mph) shot.^[2] This record was broken by Taufik Hidayat.

He played badminton at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's singles, losing in the round of 32 to Chen Hong of China.

Kenneth was the losing finalist in the [2006 Singapore Open|Aviva Open Singapore 2006], losing 21-14, 21-10 to compatriot Peter Gade, after having won that tournament in 2004.

He won the gold medal at the 2008 European Badminton Championships.^[3]

Major achievements[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• BWF Profile

This biographical article relating to Danish badminton is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Taufik Hidayat
Personal information
Born	(1981-08-10) August 10, 1981 (age 30) Bandung, West Java, Indonesia
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	65 kg (140 lb; 10.2 st)
Country	Indonesia
Handedness	Right
Coach	Mulyo Handoyo
Men's singles
Highest Ranking	1 (2000)
Current Ranking	11 (March 23, 2012[1])
Medal record Competitor for  Indonesia Men's badminton Olympic Games Gold 2004 Athens Men's singles World Championships Gold 2005 Anaheim Men's singles Silver 2010 Paris Men's singles Bronze 2009 Hyderabad Men's singles Bronze 2001 Seville Men's singles Asian Games Gold 2006 Doha Men's singles Gold 2002 Busan Men's singles Silver 2002 Busan Team Bronze 2010 Guangzhou Team Bronze 2006 Doha Team Thomas Cup Gold 2002 Guangzhou Team Gold 2000 Kuala Lumpur Team
BWF Profile

Taufik Hidayat (born August 10, 1981 in Bandung, West Java) is an Indonesian badminton player. He is a former World and Olympic champion in men's singles. He has also won the Indonesian Open six times (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2006).^[2]

When he was young, he joined the SGS Club, a badminton club in Bandung, where he trained under Iie Sumirat.

Hidayat won the men's singles competition in badminton at the 2004 Summer Olympics. In August 2005, he won the men's singles competition at the IBF World Championships. He also won the gold medal at the Asian Games twice, at Busan in 2002 and Doha in 2006.

Popular media has at times focused on the perceived rivalry between Hidayat and Chinese player Lin Dan, referring to the two as "arch rivals".^[3][4][5]

Player attributes[link]

Hidayat's main qualities are his backhand (as he is perhaps most famous for his backhand smash, revered for its unusually high generation of power), forehand jump smash, drop shot (reverse slice in particular), smooth footwork and deceiving net play. Hidayat's forehand jump smash in the 2006 world championships is currently the fastest smash recorded in single's competition: he recorded a 305 km/h in a match against Ng Wei.

This overwhelming power on both his forehand and backhand, combined with his tenacity at the net and scope for deceptive shots, provide him with an extremely diverse weaponry on court, making him one of the most difficult players to face on the open circuit. Criticisms are in his lack of fitness, impatience with loud crowds and his propensity to return a net shot with a net shot, even though his opponent is dangerously close to the net.

Participation in the Indonesian team[link]

• 5 times at Sudirman Cup (1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007)
• 6 times at Thomas Cup (2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010)
• 3 times at Summer Olympics at individual event (2000, 2004, 2008)

Achievements[link]

Career finals (25 titles, 15 runner-ups)[link]

Outcome	Year	Tournament	Opponent in final	Score
Winner	2011	India Open Grand Prix Gold	Sourabh Varma	21-15, 21-18
Runner-up	2011	Malaysia Open	Lee Chong Wei	8-21, 17-21
Runner-up	2010	Hong Kong Open	Lee Chong Wei	19-21, 9-21
Winner	2010	French Open	Joachim Persson	21-16, 21-11
Runner-up	2010	Denmark Open	Jan Ø. Jørgensen	19-21, 19-21
Winner	2010	Indonesia Open Grand Prix Gold	Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka	26-28, 21-17, 21-14
Runner-up	2010	World Championships	Chen Jin	13-21, 15-21
Winner	2010	Canadian Open	Brice Leverdez	21-15, 21-11
Runner-up	2010	Indonesia Open	Lee Chong Wei	19-21, 8-21
Runner-up	2009	French Open	Lin Dan	6-21, 15-21
Runner-up	2009	Japan Open	Bao Chunlai	15-21, 12-21
Winner	2009	U.S. Open	Hsueh Hsuan-Yi	21-15, 21-16
Runner-up	2009	Indonesia Open	Lee Chong Wei	9-21, 14-21
Winner	2009	India Open	Muhammad Hafiz Hashim	21-18, 21-19
Runner-up	2008	French Open	Peter Gade	21-16, 17-21, 7-21
Winner	2008	Macau Open	Lee Chong Wei	21-19, 21-15
Winner	2007	SEA Games (2)	Lee Yen Hui Kendrick	21-15, 21-9
Runner-up	2007	Macau Open	Chen Jin	21-19, 17-21, 18-21
Runner-up	2007	Chinese Taipei Open	Sony Dwi Kuncoro	21-18, 6-21, 13-21
Runner-up	2007	Japan Open	Lee Chong Wei	20-22, 21-19, 19-21
Winner	2007	Badminton Asia Championships (3)	Chen Hong	21-18, 21-19
Winner	2006	Asian Games (2)	Lin Dan	21-15, 22-20
Runner-up	2006	Japan Open	Lin Dan	21-16, 16-21, 3-21
Winner	2006	Indonesia Open (6)	Bao Chunlai	21-18, 21-17
Winner	2005	World Championships	Lin Dan	15-3, 15-7
Winner	2005	Singapore Open (2)	Chen Hong	15-9, 15-3
Winner	2004	Olympic Games	Shon Seung-mo	15-8, 15-7
Winner	2004	Indonesia Open (5)	Chen Hong	15-10, 15-11
Winner	2004	Badminton Asia Championships (2)	Sony Dwi Kuncoro	15-12, 7-15, 15-6
Winner	2003	Indonesia Open (4)	Chen Hong	15-9, 15-9
Winner	2002	Asian Games (1)	Lee Hyun-il	15-7, 15-9
Winner	2002	Indonesia Open (3)	Chen Hong	15-12, 15-12
Winner	2001	Singapore Open (1)	Wong Choong Hann	7-5, 0-7, 7-1, 1-7, 7-4
Winner	2000	Indonesia Open (2)	Ong Ewe Hock	15-5, 15-13
Winner	2000	Badminton Asia Championships (1)	Rony Agustinus	14-17, 15-2, 15-3
Runner-up	2000	All England Open	Xia Xuanze	6-15, 13-15
Winner	2000	Malaysia Open	Xia Xuanze	15-10, 17-14
Winner	1999	SEA Games (1)	Wong Choong Hann	15-10, 11-15, 15-11
Winner	1999	Indonesia Open (1)	Budi Santoso	17-14, 15-12
Runner-up	1999	All England Open	Peter Gade	11-15, 15-7, 10-15

Record Against Selected Opponents[link]

Includes results from all competitions 2000–present.^[6]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Taufik Hidayat, The Official Taufik Hidayat Website
• Taufik Hidayat, #48 on Time’s list of "100 Olympic Athletes To Watch"
• sports-reference.com
• tournamentsoftware.com

Lin Dan
Personal information
Nickname(s)	Super Dan
Birth name	林丹
Born	(1983-10-14) October 14, 1983 (age 28) Longyan, Fujian, China
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	70 kg (150 lb; 11 st)
Country	China
Handedness	Left
Men's singles
Highest Ranking	1 (February, 2004)
Current Ranking	2 (May, 2012[1])
Medal record Competitor for  China Men's badminton Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing Men's singles World Championships Gold 2011 London Men's Singles Gold 2009 Hyderabad Men's singles Gold 2007 Kuala Lumpur Men's singles Gold 2006 Madrid Men's singles Silver 2005 Anaheim Men's singles World Cup Gold 2006 Yiyang Men's singles Gold 2005 Yiyang Men's singles Thomas Cup Gold 2012 Wuhan Team Gold 2010 Kuala Lumpur Team Gold 2008 Jakarta Team Gold 2006 Tokyo Team Gold 2004 Jakarta Team Bronze 2002 Guangzhou Team Sudirman Cup Gold 2011 Qingdao Team Gold 2009 Guangzhou Team Gold 2007 Glasgow Team Gold 2005 Beijing Team Asian Games Gold 2010 Guangzhou Men's singles Gold 2010 Guangzhou Team Gold 2006 Doha Team Silver 2006 Doha Men's singles Bronze 2002 Busan Team Asian Championships Gold 2011 Chengdu Men's singles Gold 2010 New Delhi Men's singles Silver 2001 Manila Men's singles Bronze 2008 Johor Bahru Men's singles
BWF Profile

Lin Dan (Chinese: 林丹; pinyin: Lín Dān; born October 14, 1983 in Longyan, Fujian^[2]) is a professional badminton player from China. He is a four-time world champion, five time All England champion and the reigning Olympic champion. Widely considered to be the greatest badminton player of all time,^[3][4] by the age of 28 Lin had completed the "Super Grand Slam", having won all nine major titles in world badminton: Olympic Games, World Championships, World Cup, Thomas Cup, Sudirman Cup, Super Series Masters Finals, All England Open, Asian Games, and Asia Championships, becoming the first and only player to achieve this feat.^[5][6]

He has been nicknamed "Super Dan" by his fans.^[7]

Personal life[link]

In his early years, Lin was encouraged to learn to play piano by his parents, but chose to play badminton at the age of five. He joined the sports troop of the People's Liberation Army at the age of 13 and has been part of China's national badminton team since 2001 when he was 18.^[8][9][10]

On April 10, 2008, he created controversy when he struck coach Ji Xinpeng in front of his teammates and reporters during the warm-up tournament ahead of the Thomas Cup. The incident was reportedly triggered by Lin being unhappy with Ji's starting lineup for the tournament.^[11]

Lin has been in a romantic relationship with Xie Xingfang, herself a former world champion badminton player, since 2003.^[12] They were quietly married on December 13, 2010 in Haizhu, Guangzhou. Xie initially denied but later admitted the news when reporters got the evidence. Lin reacted angrily towards the news and insisted that it was a personal matter between him and Xie.^[13]

Career[link]

Junior events[link]

Lin emerged as a winner in the 2000 Asian Junior Championships in both the team and boys' singles events. He was also a member of the winning Chinese team and a boys' singles semi-finalist in the 2000 World Junior Championships.^[14]

2001–2003[link]

2001 marked the start of Lin's professional career. In his first final, at the Asian Badminton Championships, he was thrashed by compatriot Xia Xuanze.^[15]

In 2002 Lin took his first title at the Korea Open.^[16] He was a member of China's 2002 Thomas Cup squad which defeated Sweden (5–0),^[17] Denmark (3–2),^[18] and Korea (4–1) to reach the semifinals.^[19] However, Lin didn't play in the semifinal tie against Malaysia, which saw China's team tumble to a 1–3 defeat.^[20] Lin participated in another four tournaments without coming close to victory. He was knocked out in the first round of the Singapore,^[21] and Indonesia Opens,^[22] second round of the Denmark Open,^[23] and third round of the China Open.^[24] In October Lin was defeated in the semifinals of the Asian Games team competition which directly blew China's hope of a gold medal.^[25]

Lin started the 2003 season with a third round defeat in the All England Open.^[26] He reached a final later in the year at the Japan Open but was beaten by his compatriot Xia Xuanze once again.^[27] Lin then made his inaugural debut in the World Championships in Birmingham, England. He breezed past Per-Henrik Croona and Przemysław Wacha in the first two rounds, but was beaten by Xia again in his third round match.^[28] After the world meet, he was eliminated in the semifinals of the Singapore Open,^[29] third round of the Indonesia Open,^[30] and second round of the Malaysia Open.^[31] However, Lin ended the season strongly by capturing the Denmark,^[32] Hong Kong,^[33] and China Opens,^[34] and finishing runner-up at the German Open.

2004[link]

Lin had a good start to 2004, earning the BWF's number one world ranking for the first time in February. He helped China win the qualifying round of Thomas Cup and then captured the Swiss Open.^[35][36] He won his first ever All England Open title by beating Peter Gade in the final.^[37] He reached the semifinal of the Japan Open before going off to Jakarta, Indonesia in May for the Thomas Cup campaign.^[38]

In Thomas Cup, Lin helped China to an excellent start in which they thrashed United States and defending champion Indonesia 5–0 respectively to enter the quarterfinals.^[39] Lin then cruised past Shoji Sato and Lee Hyun-il in quarterfinal and semifinal ties against Japan and Korea respectively, each ending in 3–0 wins for China.^[40][41] In the final, he beat Peter Gade in straight games to give China the lead before the Chinese team eventually won three matches to one. China thus took the crown, ending a 14 years drought in the tournament.^[42]

Lin suffered setbacks later in the 2004 season when he was ousted in the quarterfinals of the Malaysia Open,^[43] and was reported to have a leg injury in mid-July, prior to the Olympic Games.^[44] Lin "crashed" in his first Olympic Games when, as the first seed, he was ousted early by Singapore's Ronald Susilo, who claimed Lin was "too eager to win".^[45][46] However, Lin bounced back with three titles at the Denmark,^[47] German,^[48] and China Opens,^[49] and ended the season as a semi-finalist at the Indonesia Open.^[50]

2005[link]

Lin retained his number one world ranking during 2005, winning his second German and Hong Kong Open titles, as well as the Japan Open, China Masters, and World Cup tournaments.^{[51][52][53][54][55]} He also helped China recapture the Sudirman Cup when it shut-out both defending champion South Korea in the semifinals and Indonesia in the final.^[56][57]

Lin failed to retain his All England title, losing a three set final to teammate Chen Hong,^[58] and he was beaten in the final of the Malaysia Open by another rising star, Lee Chong Wei.^[59] In his bid to capture his first world title at Anaheim California, he beat Kennevic Asuncion, Shoji Sato, Lee Hyun-il, and Peter Gade in succession to reach the final.^[60][61][62] There he was decisively beaten by Taufik Hidayat.^[63] Lin was also eliminated in the semifinals of the Singapore Open and the quarterfinals of the China Open.^[64]

2006[link]

Lin started the season by reaching the semifinals of the German Open,^[65] and had a same result in China Masters and China Open.^[66][67] He failed to win the Malaysia Open in June, which saw his opponent Lee Chong Wei had a superb display to save the title after a 13–20 down in rubber game,^[68] and also lost to Taufik Hidayat in Asian Games final.^[69]

However, he won six individual titles in the season. He recapturing All England Open,^[70] won Chinese Taipei Open,^[71] Macau Open,^[72] Hong Kong Open,^[73] Japan Open,^[74] and his first world title after beating his compatriot Bao Chunlai in the final.^[75]

In May, Lin and his teammates had extended China's Thomas Cup reign, shut out Denmark 3–0 for second consecutive title.^[76]

2007[link]

Lin Dan entered 2007 with a loss to South Korea's Park Sung-hwan in the round of 16 at the Malaysia Open. A week later he captured the Korea Open by defeating Chinese teammate Chen Jin in the final. He went on to win the German Open and then the All England championships again, crushing compatriot Chen Yu 21–13, 21–12. In June, Lin Dan was part of Team China in the Sudirman Cup, held in Glasgow, Scotland. The Chinese team retained the cup after beating Indonesia 3–0 in the final. Later in the season Lin Dan defeated Wong Choong Hann of Malaysia and became the China Masters champion for 2007. In August, Lin Dan extended his reign as the world champion when he beat Indonesia's Sony Dwi Kuncoro 21–11, 22–20 in the final of the tournament held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lin Dan thus became the first man since Yang Yang to win back to back world championships.

2008[link]

Lin started the season with a defeat in the final of the Korea Open to Lee Hyun-il.^[77] It was a match filled with controversy as Lin had a scuffle with South Korea's coach Li Mao after a line call dispute. Lin refused to apologise and received no punishment from Badminton World Federation (BWF) after its probe of the altercation.^[78][79] In March he suffered another defeat to his compatriot Chen Jin in the final of the All England Open,^[80] which was followed by press accusations that Lin "gave" the match to Chen in order to increase Chen's ranking points for Olympic qualification.^[81] In the following week, Lin won his first Swiss Open.^[82] At the Asia Championships, Lin was again accused of helping his compatriot when his loss to Chen Jin in the semifinals ensured Chen's qualification for the Olympic Games.^[83]

In Thomas Cup, Lin won every match he played except his semifinal clash with Lee Chong Wei, and helped China to a third successive title in the tournament. After easy victories over Nigeria and Canada in the group stage, China defeated Thailand in the quarterfinals.^[84] Despite Lin's loss to Lee Chong Wei in the semifinals, China still managed to qualify for the final over Malaysia 3–2 ^[85] and retained the title after beating South Korea 3–1.^[86]

Lin won the Thailand Open, his last tournament before the 2008 Olympic Games.^[87]

In Olympic Games, he beat Hong Kong's Ng Wei in the first round,^[88] Park Sung-hwan in the second round,^[89] and Peter Gade in the quarterfinals.^[90] He then beat his teammate Chen Jin in straight sets to set up a "dream" final against Lee Chong Wei.^[91] However, the final was a one-sided match as Lin demolished Lee 21–12, 21–8, and became the first men's singles player to win the Olympic gold as a first seed.^[92]

Not back in action until the China Open in November, Lin again beat Lee in the final,^[93] before losing to Chen Jin once again in the Hong Kong Open.^[94] Lin was eligible to participate in the Masters Finals, but due to the withdrawal of China, he didn't take part in the tournament.^[95]

2009[link]

In March, Lin won his fourth All England title by defeating Lee Chong Wei, in only his first appearance since November 2008,^[96] but lost to the same opponent in the final of Swiss Open a week later.^[97]

He then participated in the Sudirman Cup in which he helped China to a 5–0 victory against England^[98] and another clean swept against Japan^[99] and Indonesia.^[100] In the semifinals, it was another showdown between Lin and Lee Chong Wei in a tie against Malaysia, and Lin went on to win in straight games to set up a clash against Korea in the final.^[101] In the final, Lin had no trouble beating Park Sung-hwan, helping China to secure the Cup for the third time in a row without conceding a match to any opponent in the tournament.^[102]

In June, Lin failed to win the Indonesia Open after being knocked out in the quarter-finals.^[103] It was the second tournament he failed to win, aside from an upset by South Korean's Choi Ho-jin in December during the East Asian Games final.^[104]

Lin then went on to sweep all titles in tournaments he participated in between August and November. He became the first player to win the World Championships three times in Hyderabad, India, beating Chen Jin in the final.^[105] Later Dan would go on to win his fourth China Masters title^[106] and first French Open title.^[107] He closed the season with the China Open title^[108] before heading to Hong Kong for the East Asian Games.

2010[link]

Lin started the season with failure to defend the All England Open title by losing in the quarterfinals,^[109] and had another quarterfinals exit in the Swiss Open.^[110] He only won his first seasonal title in the Badminton Asia Championships, which also marked his first title in the championships.^[111]

Lin had his fifth appearance in Thomas Cup. After an easy win against Peru,^[112] he won the double encounter against Korea's Park Sung-hwan in the second group tie and the quarterfinals respectively.^[113] In the semifinals, he defeated Lee Chong Wei in straight games to help China reach the final,^[114] before outclassing Indonesia for a fourth consecutive title.^[115]

After the Thomas Cup triumph, Lin played in the World Championships in Paris, France. He won his opening match^[116] and then beat Henri Hurskainen and Bao Chunlai in the second and third rounds respectively^[117][118] before being upset by Park Sung-hwan in the quarterfinals. The day also saw his arch rival Lee Chong Wei exit from the tournament.^[119] Lin then bounced back to win the China Masters,^[120] but continued his lowlight in the season after being beaten in the final of the Japan Open,^[121] and conceding walkovers in the quarterfinals of the China Open,^[122] and Hong Kong Open respectively.^[123]

However, Lin managed to win his first ever Asian Games gold medal in November by beating Lee Chong Wei in final, thus becoming the first player to win all of the present major titles available to Asians in badminton, both individual and national team.^[124]

2011[link]

Lin Dan in 2011 German Open.

Lin began the year with a withdrawal in the Malaysia Open's quarterfinals, which marked his third withdrawal in a row since late 2010. This action caused criticism mostly by Taufik Hidayat, who wanted the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to investigate.^[125] His mother denied that he retired on purpose, and cited he had a waist injury.^[126] However, he sprang back to win the first ever million dollar badminton tournament, Korea Open, a week later by defeating Lee Chong Wei in a rubber game final.^[127] He then won the German Open, beating his compatriot Chen Jin in the final.^[128]

However, Lin's hope to become the first player to win five All England titles in the open era was dashed^[129] when he was defeated by Lee Chong Wei in the final.^[130] He then won his second Asian Championships in April on a day which saw China sweep all five titles.^[131] Lin helped China to a fourth consecutive Sudirman Cup title in May, defeating Denmark 3–0 in the final.^[132] In June, Lin withdrew from the Singapore Open final due to gastric flu, this drew the jeers from fans in the stadium.^[133] Just few days later, he was stunned by Sho Sasaki in the second round of Indonesia Open.^[134]

In August, he won his fourth World Championships title by beating Lee Chong Wei in final in Wembley Arena, a venue which will host the same competition for 2012 Summer Olympics. This dashed Lee's hope of becoming the first Malaysian to win a gold medal in the World Championships.^[135]

In September, he was ousted in the semi-finals of China Masters,^[136] and withdrew from the semifinals of Japan Open.^[137] This was followed up by a shock exit in the second round of the Denmark Open to Hong Kong player Wong Wing Ki,^[138] and retired in the semifinals of French Open despite leading the match, stated it is due to paronychia.^[139][140] The retirement also marked his sixth in the season, many media quest the retirement was due to the strategic consideration to let China team have full quota in men's singles for 2012 Olympics.^[141] However, Li Yongbo said Lin retirement is not a "gift", this is due to that BWF stated that each top players are compulsory to participate in number of tournament and Lin needs a better condition towards the Olympics.^[142] Lin voice frustrated that the peak schedule was the reason he had a most retirement in a season.^[143] He ended the last three tournaments in high note, won his fifth Hong Kong Open and China Open title respectively,^[144][145] and his first ever Super Series Master Finals title.^[146]

2012[link]

Lin started the year by losing to Lee in the final of the Korea Open,^[147] and a second round defeat in Malaysia Open.^[148] He won his fifth German Open title in March, and his first of the season.^[149] He then won the All England Open in March, thus became the first man in 33 years to win five titles.^[150] In April, Lin withdrew from semifinals of the Badminton Asia Championships due to waist injury, and the move also helped his compatriot Chen Jin secure the Olympics berth.^[151]

He helped China to fifth consecutive Thomas Cup title without losing a single match in every tie he played.^[152]

Awards[link]

Lin won the Eddie Choong Player of the Year award for two consecutive years in 2006 and 2007.^[153] He also secured the BWF Best Male Player of the Year in 2008.^[154] Lin was voted Most Valuable Player (MVP) during the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China.^[155] On January 16, 2011, he was voted as the 2010 best male athlete in CCTV Sports Personality of the Year for his clean sweep in major badminton titles.^[156]

Individual finals[link]

Titles (49)[link]

Year	Tournament	Opponent in final	Score
2002	Korea Open (1)	Shon Seung-mo	1–7, 7–3, 7–3, 7–5
2003	Denmark Open (1)	Chen Yu	15–4, 15–6
2003	Hong Kong Open (1)	Boonsak Ponsana	15–4, 9–15, 15–8
2003	China Open (1)	Wong Choong Hann	17–16, 15–12
2004	Swiss Open (1)	Bao Chunlai	15–12, 15–6
2004	All England Open (1)	Peter Gade	9–15, 15–5, 15–8
2004	Denmark Open (2)	Xia Xuanze	15–12, 15–11
2004	German Open (1)	Xia Xuanze	17–16, 15–9
2004	China Open (2)	Bao Chunlai	15–11, 15–10
2005	German Open (2)	Muhammad Hafiz Hashim	15–8, 15–8
2005	Japan Open (1)	Chen Hong	15–4, 2–0 (retired)
2005	China Masters (1)	Bao Chunlai	15–6, 15–13
2005	Hong Kong Open (2)	Bao Chunlai	15–10, 15–4
2005	World Cup (1)	Boonsak Ponsana	21–13, 21–11
2006	All England Open (2)	Lee Hyun-il	15–7, 15–7
2006	Chinese Taipei Open	Lee Chong Wei	21–18, 12–21, 21–11
2006	Macau Open	Lee Chong Wei	21–18, 18–21, 21–18
2006	Hong Kong Open (3)	Lee Chong Wei	21–19, 8–21, 21–16
2006	World Championships (1)	Bao Chunlai	18–21, 21–17, 21–12
2006	Japan Open (2)	Taufik Hidayat	16–21, 21–16, 21–3
2006	World Cup (2)	Chen Yu	21–19, 19–21, 21–17
2007	Korea Open (2)	Chen Jin	21–14, 21–19
2007	German Open (3)	Chen Yu	walkover
2007	All England Open (3)	Chen Yu	21–13, 21–12
2007	China Masters (2)	Wong Choong Hann	21–19, 21–9
2007	World Championships (2)	Sony Dwi Kuncoro	21–11, 22–20
2007	Denmark Open (3)	Bao Chunlai	21–15, 21–12
2007	Hong Kong Open (4)	Lee Chong Wei	9–21, 21–15, 21–15
2008	Swiss Open (2)	Lee Chong Wei	21–13, 21–18
2008	Thailand Open	Boonsak Ponsana	17–21, 21–15, 21–13
2008	Olympic Games	Lee Chong Wei	21–12, 21–8
2008	China Open (3)	Lee Chong Wei	21–18, 21–9
2009	All England Open (4)	Lee Chong Wei	21–19, 21–12
2009	World Championships (3)	Chen Jin	21–18, 21–16
2009	China Masters (3)	Boonsak Ponsana	21–17, 21–17
2009	French Open	Taufik Hidayat	21–6, 21–15
2009	China Open (4)	Jan Ø. Jørgensen	21–12, 21–12
2010	Badminton Asia Championships (1)	Wang Zhengming	21–17, 21–15
2010	China Masters (4)	Chen Long	21–15, 13–21, 21–14
2010	Asian Games	Lee Chong Wei	21–13, 15–21, 21–10
2011	Korea Open (3)	Lee Chong Wei	21–19, 14–21, 21–16
2011	German Open (4)	Chen Jin	21–19, 21–11
2011	Badminton Asia Championships (2)	Bao Chunlai	21–19, 21–13
2011	World Championships (4)	Lee Chong Wei	20–22, 21–14, 23–21
2011	Hong Kong Open (5)	Chen Jin	21–12, 21–19
2011	China Open (5)	Chen Long	21–17, 26–24
2011	Super Series Masters Finals	Chen Long	21–12, 21–16
2012	German Open (5)	Simon Santoso	21–11, 21–11
2012	All England Open (5)	Lee Chong Wei	21–19, 6–2 (retired)