The Battle for Badminton Supremacy: Who Will Come Out on Top?
Who’s the best badminton player in the world? It’s certainly difficult to answer that question with any degree of certainty, but one thing’s certain—one country will go down in history as the most dominant badminton powerhouse ever to have played the sport. Over the next few months, we’ll take a look at the top contenders to be that country by taking an in-depth look at their histories and their chances of winning it all in 2016.
India
Badminton is a sport that has been played
in India for over 100 years, and there is evidence of its existence dating back
to the 16th century. The country's national association was founded in 1926 and
now has 20 affiliated member associations. In the past, India's best players
had some success at international tournaments, but haven't won any medals since
Prakash Padukone took home a bronze at the 1983 world championships.
In 2014, two Indian badminton players, Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu became Olympic finalists. Nehwal was defeated by Spain's Carolina Marin while Sindhu managed to beat Japan's Nozomi Okuhara to win silver. It marked India's first ever medal in women’s singles badminton at the Olympics. Sindhu also went on to become the first Indian woman to reach no.1 spot in Women's Singles Ranking following her gold medal at 2018 Commonwealth Games. These victories have led many people to believe that India will soon be considered as one of the leading badminton countries in the world, though China still holds this title today with their 23 gold medals (compared to India's 2). In order to achieve better results in future competitions, it's crucial for India to invest more time and money into coaching badminton athletes. Improving training facilities could go a long way towards achieving better results too - such as making sure every player has access to sufficient courts. More resources need to be allocated so talented players can afford coaching from experts outside of the country which could lead to an increase in performance levels. For example, if someone were to give me the opportunity to train with Roger Federer or Serena Williams I would take it without hesitation.
China
Badminton has a rich history in China,
dating back to the Qing Dynasty. The country's first badminton club was
established in 1902 and the sport was introduced at the Beijing Olympics in
2008. BWF Ranking (as of October 10th 2016): #1 ) Which country is the best in
badminton? 2) It is hard to say which country is currently considered the best
as there are so many different factors that affect performance like coaching,
weather, politics, skill level and more. 3) Despite this lack of consensus, one
could make an argument for any number of countries as all have experienced
success at various points throughout their respective histories. 4) Currently
both China and Indonesia boast four Olympic gold medals apiece with some
believing that Chinese players have been dominating internationally recently
thanks to a more regimented training program run by government-sponsored sports
schools such as those based out of Shandong Province or Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region. 5) At the same time, Indonesia’s claim to fame is that it
boasts the world’s most dominant player in Taufik Hidayat who won six consecutive
world titles from 2001-2006. 6) Players from other countries have had moments
of dominance as well including Denmark’s Jorgen Persson who won three straight
All England championships from 1982-1984 and Japan’s Masao who
dominated international competitions during the late 1950s. 7) In short, it
will be very difficult to tell which country will come out on top as they are
all so competitive! 8) Which country is the best in badminton? 9) There is no
clear answer because it depends on how you define best. 10) Which country is
the best in badminton? 11) From 1996-2000, Malaysia achieved a 12-year streak
of winning Asian Games gold medals which no other country has ever matched. 12)
Thailand holds a 33 year winning streak at the Southeast Asian Games which
equals Singapore's success at the SEA Games. 13) Which country is the best in
badminton? 14) Indonesia ranks third among Oceania nations and would have
ranked higher if not for its colonial ties to Holland which included Dutch
national players participating in their tournaments until 1962 when Indonesian
independence occurred.
Indonesia
The country with the most badminton players
is Indonesia, which has a total of 1.7 million players and more than 18,000
registered clubs in the country. They are followed by China at 1.5 million and
India at around 1 million.
In the Olympics, Indonesia's best finish
was 4th place in 1992 and 1996; they've never won a medal.
Despite having so many badminton players and not winning many medals, Indonesia is still dominant in regional competitions such as Southeast Asia games and Southeast Asian Games since they have won 20 gold medals (compared to 19 from Malaysia) in all of those competitions combined. It also doesn't help that their pool of talent is dwindling due to too much talent going overseas. However, there may be light at the end of the tunnel as Indonesia recently hosted an international tournament called Battle of Surabaya which had 22 countries participate. Interestingly enough, out of the six titles up for grabs (men's singles, men's doubles, women's singles, women's doubles, mixed doubles and mixed team), three were claimed by Indonesians. What will happen when the SEA Games happen this year? Will Indonesia finally be able to get some long-awaited victories or will we continue seeing other countries dominating the region?
South Korea
In the Olympics, there are many factors that come into play when determining which country is the best in a particular sport. For example, China dominates in weightlifting and India is number one at field hockey. However, when it comes to badminton, South Korea is top dog and has been the dominant power since 1984. The country’s ascendancy to top status can be traced back to Wang Tao becoming the first Chinese-born male player in 1983. From there, South Korean players started their rapid rise up the ranks of world rankings and they were soon dominating tournaments all over Asia while also competing against other countries. As a result of their meteoric rise, South Koreans have won all but two of gold medals available since 1983 (the exceptions being Japan's victories in 1992 and 2004). They currently lead all Asian nations with an unprecedented number of championships at 71 wins out of 77 tournaments held so far - this dominance makes them clear favorites for another victory at 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Their latest success came at December 2018's Thomas Cup finals where they defeated Indonesia 3-0 in Singapore. Prior to this win, South Korea had gone four years without a major title and had lost the last five games it played before the final clash with Indonesia. Following the triumph, head coach Park Sung Han revealed his elation stating: I am very pleased because we got our revenge against Indonesia after four years. There is no team more deserving than us to represent Asia at the World Championships.
Malaysia
Many Malaysians are now watching badminton
matches on television or live at stadiums. As more people become interested in
the sport, it is only natural that more facilities and courts will be built to
accommodate this increased interest.
What makes Malaysia such a great place to
play badminton are its beautiful tropical climate and its ubiquitous
availability of space-enough space for backyard games with friends or for large
tournaments like those held every year during Merdeka day celebrations. Some
Malaysians even have their own badminton court in their homes! And since this
country has so much enthusiasm for the game, not just among locals but also
among visitors from all over the world, you can expect to find some really high
quality competition. For example one of the best female players today was born
in China but moved to Malaysia when she was eight years old! So if you're
wondering which country is the best in badminton-it's undoubtedly Malaysia.
There is no doubt about it. There are many factors that go into determining
which country should hold the title for best in badminton, and what better way
than to look at all these factors objectively? Let's get started! One factor
that goes into determining who is the best at badminton is geography. The
countries with the most land mass have an easier time supporting a wide variety
of sports because they don't run out of playing spaces as quickly as smaller
countries would. Therefore, it makes sense that Malaysia would be ranked higher
than smaller countries like Singapore. Another thing to consider is population
size-a lot more people means more chances to find athletes who are talented in
badminton and other sports alike. Lastly, weather conditions play an important
role in how often people can play sports outdoors because different climates
make outdoor activity possible at different times of year.
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