Source:REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
[Saba Sports News] The 2025 Badminton World Championships have concluded, with the Chinese national team achieving an excellent result of 2 gold and 3 silver medals. After the tournament, Chinese Badminton Association President Zhang Jun, in an exclusive interview, discussed the players’ performances. Reflecting on this World Championships, Zhang Jun stated: “Everyone twisted together into a single rope, treating the individual events as a team competition. This tournament was different from the usual open tournaments; we advanced and exited as a team. Even athletes who were eliminated earlier maintained their training and served as practice partners for those still competing. Everyone dedicated themselves to the team.” Simultaneously, players from different individual events also encouraged each other. “When you couldn’t hold on, I stepped up; when I couldn’t, you covered for me,” effectively turning the individual events into a team battle. The competition was thrilling. Often in the past, only team events evoked such feelings, but this individual tournament felt equally tense. Even in the women’s doubles final, which was an advantageous match for Liu Shengshu/Tan Ning, the process of winning was very difficult. In the second set of the final, Liu Shengshu netted a diving shot, trailing 20-21. “I instantly slid down from my coach’s chair; fortunately, the camera didn’t catch it. Many of our coaches brought ‘Suxiao Jiuxin Pills’ [a fast-acting heart rescue medicine] onto the court.”