Scott Evans (badminton)
Scott Evans (born 26 September 1987 in Dublin) is a former Irish professional badminton player. As of 2017 he was the highest ranked Irish player.
| Scott Evans | |
|---|---|
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| Personal information | |
| Birth name | Scott Evans |
| Country |  Ireland |
| Born | 26 September 1987 Dublin, Ireland |
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] |
| Weight | 78 kg (172 lb; 12.3 st)[1] |
| Years active | 2002–2018 |
| Handedness | Right |
| Coach | Jim Laugesen (2004–12) Peter Gade (2012–2018 ) |
| Men's singles | |
| Career record | 229 wins, 204 losses |
| Highest ranking | 23 (18 June 2015) |
| Current ranking | 109 (27 Mar 2017) |
| BWF profile | |
Evans has represented Ireland at the 2008, 2012, and 2016 Olympic Games. He became the first Irishman to win a badminton match at the Olympic during his last participation in 2016. He won the Irish National Badminton Championships in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
He attended Wesley College Dublin. In his youth Evans played for Irish association football club Leicester Celtic A.F.C..[2]
Career
Evans has played two-time Olympic gold medalist China's Lin Dan and world No. 1 Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei 3 times each. At the 2011 BWF World Championships, Evans met the second seed and eventual champion Lin Dan in the second round and came out with a 15–21, 16–21 loss. Nearly one year later at the 2012 London Olympics, Evans again met the eventual winner Lin Dan of China in the first round and was defeated 8–21, 14–21.[3] At the 2013 BWF World Championships, Evans lost to top seed and eventual silver medalist Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia in the first round with a score of 14–21, 15–21.
2016 Summer Olympics
Evans qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics in the men's singles category. In the group stage, he was put with Germany's Marc Zwiebler and host Brazil's Ygor Coelho de Oliveira. He became the first Irishman to win a badminton game at an Olympics as he beat Zwiebler 9–21, 21–17, 21–7. Evans then won the second match against Ygor Coelho de Oliveira 21–8, 19–21, 21–8. The result means Evans would be qualified for the Round of 16,[4] which he would then face Denmark's Viktor Axelsen. Evans lost to Axelsen 16–21, 12–21 in the round of 16.[5]
Titles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent in Final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Irish Open |  Lucas Corvee |
21–19, 21–18 |
| 2013 | Cyprus International |  Andrew Smith |
21–17, 21–11 |
| 2014 | Brasil Open |  Dieter Domke |
7–11, 6–11, 11–6, 11–8, 11–7 |
- BWF International Series tournament
- BWF Grand Prix tournament
Highlights
- 2016 – Irish Open: Men's singles (runner up)
- 2014 – Bitburger Open: Men's singles (runner up)
- 2014 – Bulgarian International: Men's singles (runner up)
- 2011 – Denmark International: Men's singles (semi final)
- 2010 – European Championships: Men's singles (quarter final)
- 2009 – Scottish Open: Men's singles (semi final)
- 2008 – Scott Evans secures qualification to 2008 Summer Olympics[6]
- 2006 – Southern PanAm International: Men's singles (semi final)
- 2006 – Portuguese International: Men's doubles (quarter final)
- 2005 – Hungarian International: Men's singles (runner up)
- 2002 – Helexpo Thessaloniki World Grand Prix: Men's doubles (quarter final)
- 2004 – Welsh International: Men's singles (quarter final)
- 2004 – Italian International: Men's doubles (runner up)
- 2004 – Cyprus International: Men's singles (quarter final)
- 2004 – Cyprus International: Men's doubles (runner up)
- 2004 – Victor Lithuanian International: Men's doubles (runner up)
- 2003 – Italian International: Mixed doubles (quarter final)
- 2002 – Irish International: Men's doubles (quarter final)
References
- "Scott Evans". Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- Leicester Celtic past players
- "Olympics badminton: Lin Dan defeats Scott Evans". Retrieved 30 July 2012.
- "Rio 2016 Olympic: Scott Evans holds nerve in Rio cauldron to book last-16 spot". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- "Ireland's Scott Evans bows out of Rio Olympics after creating history". The 42. 15 August 2016. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
- "Its official Ireland's Scott Evans & Chloe Magee have qualified for the Beijing Olympics this summer..." Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 29 May 2008.