Zhang Jun (badminton)

Zhang Jun (simplified Chinese: 张军; traditional Chinese: 張軍; pinyin: Zhāng Jūn; born November 26, 1977 in Suzhou, Jiangsu) is a former male badminton player from the People's Republic of China. He is now a coach with the Chinese national team following his retirement from international play.

Zhang Jun
Personal information
Birth name张军
Country China
Born (1977-11-26) November 26, 1977
Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight75 kg (165 lb; 11.8 st)
HandednessLeft
Mixed doubles
Highest ranking1 (with Gao Ling) (June 7, 2001[1])
Medal record
Men's badminton
Representing  China
Olympic Games
2000 Sydney Mixed doubles
2004 Athens Mixed doubles
World Championships
1999 Copenhagen Men's doubles
2001 Seville Mixed doubles
2003 Birmingham Mixed doubles
Asia Cup
2001 Singapore Men's team
BWF profile
In this Chinese name, the family name is Zhang.

Career

As a doubles specialist, the solidly built Zhang Jun won several international men's doubles titles with compatriot Zhang Wei including the Swiss (1998), China (2001), and Thailand (2005) Opens. However, the majority of his titles, and the most prestigious ones, came in mixed doubles with the formidable Gao Ling. These included consecutive gold medals at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games, earned by surviving a number of tight matches, particularly in 2000 when they were on the verge of elimination in the semifinals. In similar fashion, Zhang and Gao captured the 2001 IBF World Championships by squeezing past the brilliant Kim Dong-moon and partner Ra Kyung-min 17-16 in the third game. Zhang's other titles with Gao included three victories (2001, 2003, and 2006) at the prestigious All-England Championships; the Badminton Asia Championships in 2002; the China Masters in 2005; and the China (2002, 2003), Japan (2003), Indonesia (2004), Malaysia (2004, 2006), Thailand (2005), Singapore (2005), and German (2006) Opens.

Zhang had the honor of being an Olympic torch carrier at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Games.[2]

After retirement, Zhang Jun coached the Chinese Badminton National Team. He was promoted to head coach of the national badminton doubles team in 2017, before being selected as vice chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association (CBA) in 2018.[3]

On January 28, 2019, Zhang Jun was elected as the chairman of Chinese Badminton Association.[4][5]

Zhang Jun, as president of the Chinese Badminton Association, competed with Khunying Patama, his counterpart from the Badminton Association of Thailand and Anton Aditya Subowo, president of Badminton Asia, for the position of BWF deputy president[6] but lost; Patama was elected deputy president in May 2019, during the Sudirman Cup tournament in Nanning, China.[7]

Personal life

Zhang Jun married synchronised swimmer Hu Ni in 2006. Their son was born in 2009.[8] (Zhang Jun's former doubles partner Cai Yun, whom he later also coached, married Hu Ni's teammate Wang Na in 2010.)

Achievements

World Championships

Men's doubles

Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result
1999 Brøndby Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark Zhang Wei Ha Tae-kwon
Kim Dong-moon		 6–15, 15–17 Bronze

Asian Championships

Men's doubles

Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result
1998 Bangkok, Thailand Zhang Wei Ha Tae-kwon
Kang Kyung-jin		 15–12, 11–15, 13–15 Silver
1999 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Zhang Wei Ha Tae-kwon
Kim Dong-moon		 6–15, 4–15 Silver

IBF World Grand Prix

The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) since 1983.

Men's doubles

Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result
1998 Swiss Open Zhang Wei Liu Yong
Yu Jinhao		 17–15, 15–7 Winner
2000 Thailand Open Zhang Wei Sigit Budiarto
Halim Haryanto		 15–5, 15–10 Winner
2001 China Open Zhang Wei Chen Qiqiu
Liu Yong		 7–1, 4–7, 8–6 4–7, 7–5 Winner

References
  1. IBF Historical Ranking – Mixed Doubles Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Spectacular ceremony opens Beijing Olympics". China Internet Information Center. 9 August 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  3. "Zhang Jun new chairman of Chinese Badminton". Badminton Famly. 2 February 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  4. "张军当选新一届羽协主席 李永波不再任副主席" [Zhang Jun elected as new chairman of Badminton Association and Li Yongbo ceases to be vice chairman]. Sina Sports (in Chinese). 28 January 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  5. "Former Olympic champion takes over badminton". China Daily. 28 January 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  6. "Former Olympic champ Zhang Jun confirmes run for BWF deputy president". China Daily. Beijing. 26 February 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2020 – via Xinhua News Agency.
  7. "NEW BWF DEPUTY PRESIDENT AND BWF COUNCIL MEMBER ELECTED" (Press release). Badminton World Federation. 23 May 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  8. Zhao Yanyan (赵彦砚) (2010-01-06). "儿子降生时在巴黎酒店睡觉 张军跟队友求育儿经" [When His Son Was Born He Was Sleeping in a Paris Hotel: Zhang Jun Asks Teammates for Parenting Tips]. Jinling Evening News (in Chinese).
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