Famous Badminton Players: Top 10 Legends of the Sport

Do you play badminton? Why not try to get to know the famous personalities of badminton? Badminton is an internationally popular sport and has produced renowned players like Lee Chong Wei, and P. V. Sindhu. These famous badminton players are known for their dominance on the court, and their exceptional skills. This blog covers the top ten famous personalities of badminton who have left an impact on sports. Read this blog and get to know more about these players.

Top 10 Famous Badminton Players – Name and Country

These are some of the most famous badminton players in the world. We have listed these players based on their popularity in the world, and the contributions they have made to the sport.

S. No.	Name of Famous Personalities of Badminton	Country	Current World Rank
1	Lin Dan	China	Retired
2	Lee Chong Wei	Malaysia	Retired
3	Taufik Hidayat	Indonesia	Retired
4	P. V. Sindhu	India	7
5	Carolina Marín	Spain	9
6	Viktor Axelsen	Denmark	3
7	Saina Nehwal	India	35
8	Peter Gade	Denmark	Retired
9	Gao Ling	China	Retired
10	Rudy Hartono	Indonesia	Retired

1. Lin Dan from China 

Lin Dan from China is one of the most famous personalities in badminton. He is nicknamed “Super Dan’’ and is the greatest badminton player of all time. He is an Olympic gold medalist and has received gold for his country both in 2018 and 2012. Moreover, he is a five-time world champion. He was one of the players to finish the Super Grand Slam and won 9 major badminton titles. His rivalry with Lee Chong Wei is well known in the badminton court.

Particulars	Notable Achievements
Olympic Gold Medals	Won gold in 2008 and 2012 Olympics.
Super Grand Slam	First player to win all nine major badminton titles.

2. Lee Chong Wei from Malaysia

Lee Chong Wei is one of the famous personalities of badminton. He is one of the famous badminton players because he is a 3-time Olympic silver medal winner. He is known for his speed, and the ability to make precise shots. Lee Chong Wei has held the badminton title as the world‘s number 1 player for 349 weeks. Although he never won an Olympic gold medal he has become a global icon. ‘Dare to be a Champion,” is his autography where he details his rise to fame, and as one of the greatest badminton players.

Particulars	Notable Achievements
Olympic Silver Medals	Won silver in 2008, 2012, and 2016 Olympics.
Longest World No. 1 Reign	Held the BWF No. 1 ranking for 349 weeks.

3. Taufik Hidayat from Indonesia 

Taufik Hidayat is an Olympic gold medalist (2004) and is a World Champion (2005),  He is one of the famous personalities of badminton. He had won the 2004 Athens Olympics. He is known for his elegant playing style. His rivalry with Peter Gade, and Lin Dan has resulted in one of the most thrilling badminton matches. After his retirement, he opened the Taufik Hidayat Arena to help the young badminton talents of Indonesia. Even today, he is considered one of the most famous badminton players in the world.

Particulars	Notable Achievements
Olympic Gold Medal	Won gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
World Champion	Won the 2005 BWF World Championships.

4. P. V. Sindhu from India

Did you know P. V. Sindhu was the first Indian woman to win an Olympic silver medal? She is one of the famous personalities of badminton from India. In 2016, she won an Olympic Gold Medal for India and in the 2020 Olympics, she won a bronze medal. She has also won the e 2019 World Championship. She has several BWF titles to her name and is considered one of the top players in the world.

Particulars	Notable Achievements
Olympic Medals	Won silver in 2016 and bronze in the 2020 Olympics.
World Champion	Won the 2019 BWF World Championships.

5. Carolina Marín from Spain

Carolina Marín is one of the famous personalities of badminton from Spain. She is a 2016 Olympic gold medalist and a 3-time world champion.  She has challenged the traditional powerhouse of badminton players from China and India. Her never-giving-up attitude made several comebacks from injuries. One time she held the No. 1 BWF World Ranking for 66 weeks (women’s singles). No wonder, she is one of the most famous badminton players in Spain.

Particular	Achievements
Olympic Gold Medal	Won gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Three-time World Champion	Won BWF World Championships in 2014, 2015, 2018.

6. Viktor Axelsen from Denmark 

Viktor Axelsen is one of the famous personalities of badminton from Denmark. He won the 2020 Tokyo Olympic gold medal and is a two-time world champion (2017,2022). This Danish star is fluent in Mandarin and is known for his strong defence skills and powerful smashes. Viktor Axelsen is also a 4-time European champion. Throughout his career, he was able to win every single title in individual and team events at least once ((World Tour Super 1000 level or higher).

Particular	Achievements
Olympic Gold Medal	Won gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Two-time World Champion	Won the 2017 and 2022 BWF World Championships.

7. Saina Nehwal from India

Saina Nehwal is one of the famous personalities of badminton from India. At the 2012 London Olympics, she secured a bronze medal for India. This is significant because she is the first woman from India to do so. She has been a Superseries champion several times. She has also been the World number 1.  Her achievements continue to inspire several Indian athletes. In her autobiography “Playing to Win’’ she has detailed her struggles and achievements. She is one of the most famous badminton players in India.

Particular	Achievements
Olympic Bronze Medal	Won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics.
Former World No. 1	First Indian woman to reach BWF No. 1 ranking in 2015.

8. Peter Gade from Denmark

Peter Gade from Denmark is one of the most famous personalities of badminton in Europe. He has held the world number 1 title for many years. Moreover, he has won the Superseries title and several European championships. He is known for his fast footwork and net play. Today, after his retirement, he is contributing to the field as a coach for young players.

Particular	Achievements
European Champion	Won multiple European Championships titles.
Former World No. 1	Dominated badminton rankings in the early 2000s.

9. Gao Ling from China 

Gao Ling is one of the famous personalities of badminton from China. She is a four-time gold medalist. Gao Ling is also one of the most successful doubles specialists in the world.  Throughout her career, she received a total of 9 medals (including the gold medals). She is known for her tactical intelligence, her agility, and her smile in court. Therefore, she is also nicknamed the laughing auntie in China.

Particular	Achievements
Four-time Olympic Medalist	Won two gold, one silver, and one bronze medal.
Doubles Specialist	One of the most successful women’s doubles players.

10. Rudy Hartono from Indonesia 

Rudy Hartono is another one of the famous personalities of badminton. He is considered one of the greatest badminton players in the world.  He has won the All-England Championship 8 times! Moreover, he has also obtained the World Championship in 1980. He has helped his country to achieve Thomas Cup victories. He is known for this strategic mindset and smooth playing style. In the 1970’s he was a great player. He is popular because he brought Indonesia to the global front in terms of the game.

Particular	Achievements
Eight-time All-England Champion	Won eight titles between 1968-1976.
World Champion	Won the 1980 BWF World Championships.

Also Read: 

• Famous Indian Cricketers of All Time for Sports Enthusiasts 
• Famous Sports Person of India: Names and Achievements of Indian Sports Personalities

FAQs – Famous Personalities of Batminton 

Related Articles:

Famous Personalities in Computer Science	Famous Personalities Who Failed In School
Famous Personalities Who Were Not Good at Studies	Famous IITians Inspiring Millions to Dream Big!
Famous Personalities Who Recovered From Cancer	Famous Personalities Who Broke the Gender Stereotypes

This was all about famous personalities of badminton. If you want to know more about other Famous Personalities then visit our General Knowledge page!