- Lin Dan
Infobox Badminton player
playername = Lin Dan
|thumb|150px
size = 200
caption =
nickname = "Super Dan" [Citation |last=Ramzy |first=Austin |title=100 Olympic Athletes To Watch |url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1819129_1819134_1825934,00.html |publisher="Time" |date= |accessdate=2008-08-11]
birth_name = 林丹
date_of_birth = birth date and age|mf=yes|1983|10|14
place_of_birth = flagicon|CHNLongyan ,Fujian province
height = height|m=1.78
weight = convert|72|kg|lb st|abbr=on|lk=on
event = Men Singles
country = CHN
years_active =
handedness = Left
coach =
highest_ranking = 1
date_of_highest_ranking = February 26, 2004 [ [http://www.internationalbadminton.org/histmensingles.asp?rankno=426&cat=m IBF Historical Ranking - MENS SINGLES] ]
current_ranking = 2
date_of_current_ranking = 21st August 2008
played =
titles =
bwf_id = 50906Lin Dan (zh-sp|s=林丹|p=Lin Dan) (born October 14, 1983) is a men's singles
badminton player ofHakka ancestry, fromFujian , the People's Republic of China. Lin is currently the dominant singles player on the world stage.Career
Lin started playing badminton at the age of 5, and began to his professional career at the age of 17. He soon became one of the dominant players of men's single, winning nine championships in the
BWF Super Series between 2002 and 2004. In a surprise loss, he was eliminated in the first round of the badminton men's singles in the2004 Summer Olympics inAthens , Greece. He continued to dominate in international tournaments, and has been ranked continuously number one except for a very brief period of being ranked behindLee Chong Wei ofMalaysia in 2007.Among the tournaments Lin Dan has won are the All-England Open (2004, 2006, and 2007) and the China Masters. He has helped China win three consecutive
Thomas Cup (men's world team) championships in 2004, 2006, and 2008. Lin also won the2007 World Badminton Championships in men's singles, defeatingSony Dwi Kuncoro ofIndonesia in the final to become only the 2nd player after Yang Yang to win the men's singles championship back to back, after taking the gold medal in the2006 World Badminton Championships .He played for Chinese team in Sudirman Cup 2005 and 2007 as his team won.
Lin won his first ever Olympic singles gold medal on 17 August 2008 at the Beijing Summer Olympics after defeating
Lee Chong Wei ofMalaysia in straight sets 21-12, 21-8.2004
Lin Dan became the world number one and achieved his first All England title, beating Denmark's
Peter Gade . He continued to shine as he gained theSwiss Open title; the Denmark Open title, defeating his senior and former world number oneXia Xuanze ; the German Open title; and the China Open title, beating his compatriot and good friendBao Chunlai . In May, Lin Dan also became the main role to bring theThomas Cup to China after a long domination byIndonesia .2005
In 2005, Lin Dan won the warm-up tournament of German Open after beating
Malaysia 'sMuhammad Hafiz Hashim , but he lost his All England title to compatriotChen Hong . He then defeatedChen Hong to earn the Japan Open title. In Beijing, Lin Dan and his compatriots brought back theSudirman Cup , which China lost in 2003 when they were defeated by South Korea.In August, Lin Dan reached his first
World Championship final inAnaheim , USA, but lost toIndonesia 'sTaufik Hidayat . Even so, he managed to claim several more titles: the China Masters and the Hong Kong Open.2006
Lin Dan started his brilliant year by regaining his
All England title, overcomingLee Hyun-il of South Korea. He carried on his reign as the world number one when he swept the Chinese Taipei Open, Macau Open, Hong Kong Open, World Championships, and Japan Open titles.He lost his world number one for a while to
Lee Chong Wei but reclaimed it when he emerged as the 2006 world champion, overpowering his comradeBao Chunlai 18-21, 21-17, 21-12. Bao was the player who defeated Lee in the quarter-final.Earlier in May, Lin Dan and his teammates extended China's supremacy in the Thomas and Uber Cup event in
Sendai and Tokyo, Japan. Lin won overPeter Gade in straight sets 21-17, 21-19 as China demolished Denmark 3-0.2007
Lin Dan made a poor start in the Malaysia Open, losing to South Korea's
Park Sung-hwan in the round of 16. But this did not last long, as a week later he came to be the champion of Korea Open after defeating his fellow national playerChen Jin . He attained the German Open title and thenAll England title again, crushingChen Yu of China.In June, Lin Dan participated for China in the
Sudirman Cup ,Glasgow , Scotland, and the Chinese team brought home the cup after beatingIndonesia 3-0. Lin himself did not play because the men's singles match was scheduled for the last match.Afterwards, Lin Dan ousted
Wong Choong Hann ofMalaysia and became the champion of the 2007 China Masters. He won the Denmark Open and Hong Kong Open as well. In August, Lin Dan extended his reign as the world champion as he beatIndonesia 'sSony Dwi Kuncoro in the final inKuala Lumpur ,Malaysia .2008
As every athlete looked forward to the 2008 Beijing
Olympic Games , Lin Dan, who was certainly qualified to play, did not begin well as he failed in the Malaysian Open and Korean Open. He lost his All England title toChen Jin , but then won the Swiss Open.In the 2008
Thomas Cup that was held inJakarta again, Lin Dan won almost every match he played, except in the semi-final where he lost toMalaysia 'sLee Chong Wei . However, he gave one point to China as he returned from his first-set loss and overcamePark Sung-hwan of South Korea 10-21, 21-18, and 21-8. China won over South Korea 3-1 and, with Lin's participation, brought back the cup for the third consecutive time.Lin Dan did not play in Singapore and Indonesia, two tournaments that was ranked
Super Series , but he played in the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold and conquered local favorite,Boonsak Ponsana , to take the title.In the Olympic Games, Lin Dan, who was undoubtedly the local hero, began his gold medal hunt by subduing Hong Kong's
Ng Wei 21-16, 21-13 in the round of 32. Next he saw offPark Sung-hwan (KOR) 21-11, 21-8, and shatteredPeter Gade 's dream of ever winning a medal in the Beijing Games in the last eight. He facedChen Jin in the semis and sent the younger player to fightLee Hyun-il in the bronze medal match.Lee Chong Wei was his last opponent. It was supposedly to be a tough match, but Lin Dan grabbed the gold as he overwhelmed the Malaysian in an easy two-setter 21-12, 21-8. Lin became the first men's singles ever to win the All England title, the world championship title, and the Olympic gold medal.Lin Dan plays some exhibition in Hong Kong and takes a holiday after the Olympics, and he will play again after October 8.
Personal Life
Lin is one of the more popular and controversial badminton players active today, due to his flamboyant personality. He is known as a temperamental player, occasionally disrupting matches to protest line calls. He has a romantic relationship with fellow Chinese badminton player
Xie Xingfang [ [http://www.badzine.info/content/view/228/2/ Yonex All England - Golden couple for a 10th time] , BadZine.com, 12 March 2007] . Lin was once an officer in thePeople's Liberation Army [ [http://www.nj.com/olympics/index.ssf/2008/08/chinese_stars_a_perfect_couple.html Chinese stars a perfect couple in badminton] , NewJersey.com, 17 August 2008] . He has been nicknamed "Super Dan" by his adoring mainland fans.tyle and attributes
Lin Dan's playing style compromises quick maneuverability around the court and the ability to maintain long, aggressive rallies. His well built physique, powerful straight/cross court jump smashes, and fast penetrating footwork makes him one of the toughest elite badminton player's known. In terms of weaknesses he will sometimes make too many unforced errors at the net and lose mental focus at crucial moment's of a game. Sometimes, he tends to be very stiff and nervous when he plays in high-pressured atmosphere, this is where he tends to make mistakes.
Titles
References
External links
*zh icon [http://95002037.qzone.qq.com Lin Dan's Blog]
*zh icon [http://2008.qq.com/lindan/ The Official LinDan Website]
*zh icon [http://2008.qq.com/badminton/ The Official China Badminton Website]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.