Yang Yang (; born December 8, 1963, in Nanjing, Jiangsu) is a former Chinese badminton player.
He is the first men's singles player in the world to have won two World Badminton Championships consecutively (1987 and 1989). He also won the men's singles gold medal when badminton was a demonstration sport at the 1988 Summer Olympics. He possessed great agility, quick footwork, accurate power, and coolness under pressure, and is widely regarded as one of the finest singles players in the history of the sport.
Career Yang began training in 1975, when he was 12 years old. He was recruited by the Chinese national team in 1983. He won his first Chinese national championship title in 1984. In 1985, he won the Hong Kong Open by defeating Morten Frost. In 1986, he won the Japan Open and the Hong Kong Open for the second straight year, and also helped China to regain the Thomas Cup (men's world team championship) from Indonesia by winning key matches. In the late 80s he dominated international singles play, winning the World Championships over Morten Frost in 1987 and over young Ardy Wiranata in 1989. In 1988 he also won the Olympic exhibition event in Seoul (badminton became an official Olympic sport at the next games in Barcelona). In 1989 he added the venerable All-England Championships to his tally; thus, by twenty-five, he captured all the titles by which "greatness" in the sport is generally measured.
China's Golden Generation As a member of China's golden badminton generation of the 1980s which included stars Zhao Jianhua and Xiong Guobao, Yang Yang played an crucial role in making China the major world badminton superpower. His play was instrumental in China's consecutive Thomas Cup (men's world team) titles in 1986, 1988, and 1990.
Retirement In 1991, he retired as a player and started coaching in Malaysia. In the very next year, he guided Malaysia to its first Thomas Cup victory in 25 years, the only occasion since 1967 in which neither Indonesia nor China has won the cup. He then stayed in Malaysia to develop his business for badminton equipment. He returned to China in year 2000, and opened a badminton club named after himself in Nanjing.
Achievements Olympic Games (exhibition) Men's singles YearVenueOpponentScoreResult 1988 Seoul National University Gymnasium, Seoul, South Korea Icuk Sugiarto 15–4, 15–10 Gold
World Championships Men's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 1985 Olympic Saddledome, Calgary, Canada Morten Frost 8–15, 5–15 Bronze 1987 Capital Indoor Stadium, Beijing, China Morten Frost 15–2, 13–15, 15–12 Gold 1989 Senayan Sports Complex, Jakarta, Indonesia Ardy Wiranata 15–10, 2–15, 15–5 Gold
World Cup Men's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 1984 Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia Han Jian 12–15, 10–15 Silver 1985 Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia Morten Frost 15–12, 14–17, 10–15 Bronze 1986 Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia Morten Frost 9–15, 1–15 Bronze 1987 Stadium Negara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Zhao Jianhua 15–6, 2–15, 12–15 Silver 1988 National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand Zhao Jianhua 15–5, 15–6 Gold 1989 Guangzhou Gymnasium, Guangzhou, China Foo Kok Keong 17–14, 15–6 Gold 1990 Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia Wu Wenkai 12–15, 9–15 Bronze
Asian Games Men's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 1986 Olympic Gymnastics Arena, Seoul, South Korea Zhao Jianhua 9–15, 16–17 Silver 1990 Beijing Gymnasium, Beijing, China Zhao Jianhua 10–15, 11–15 Silver
Asian Championships Men's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 1985 Stadium Negara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Zhao Jianhua 10–15, 15–5, 6–15 Silver
IBF World Grand Prix (9 titles, 1 runners-up) The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) from 1983 to 2006.
Men's singles Year Tournament Opponent Score Result1985Hong Kong Open Morten Frost15–10, 15–11 Winner1986Japan Open Ib Frederiksen5–15, 15–6, 15–8 Winner1986Hong Kong Open Icuk Sugiarto6–15, 15–8, 15–6 Winner1986World Grand Prix Finals Morten Frost18–13, 15–8 Winner1987Scandinavian Open Icuk SugiartoWalkover Winner1987Malaysia Open Steen Fladberg4–15, 15–10, 15–7 Winner1987Indonesia Open Eddy Kurniawan15–6, 15–8 Winner1988Hong Kong Open Icuk Sugiarto15–7, 1–15, 11–15 Runner-up1989Japan Open Foo Kok Keong15–2, 15–10 Winner1989All England Open Morten Frost15–6, 15–7 Winner
Invitation Tournament (1 title) Year Tournament Opponent Score Result1988Konica Cup Sompol Kukasemkij15–10, 15–2 Winner
External links Badmintoncn.com: Yang Yang 羽壇“王中王”回歸故鄉續寫傳奇