The promising future of badminton worldwide
The demands of becoming a top-level athlete mean that the sports life of an elite player is not very long. And in a sport as demanding as badminton, this life cycle is shortened, especially in the singles disciplines.
Because of this, and because of the constant evolution of training preparation, more and more young stars are visible in their continental circuits.
Athletes such as An Se Young (Korea), who at the age of sixteen was challenging the great ladies of the world women’s singles, or Christo Popov, who in 2024 is spreading his wings to fly higher than his older brother Toma in the world ranking are good examples of how these new generations are taking over the courts.
The French national team, with the Popov brothers as a reference, have managed to bring great players on the scene in recent years. This is the case of Alex Lanier, who at the age of nineteen, is already flirting with the podiums of the European senior circuit.
Talent is not only seen in the singles events, as doubles players such as Estelle Van Leeuwen (England) or the Danish duo Lungaard-Vestergaard predict a promising future.
Some of these players will be present at the Madrid Spain Masters by Iberdrola such as the aforementioned Popov brothers, Juliana Viana (Brazil), Lauren Lam (USA), the Christophersen brothers (Denmark). But not only stars from other countries will come, Spain also has an excellent pool of young players, such as Lucía Rodríguez or Rubén García who were part of the junior team that made history with the eighth place in the World Championship in Santander 2022.
All these generations continue to renew themselves in youth tournaments, such as the one held just a week ago in Oviedo, or the international events in Benalmádena (U15) and Alicante (U19). In addition, Spain will host the European Junior Championships in the last quarter of the year.
2024 is an important year for young players, because as well as the Olympic Games, the Youth Games will also be held in Korea. After the tremendous and unexpected shock of the pandemic, every tournament is even more important than it used to be.
Seizing every opportunity and making the most of every moment is something that has moved up the priority scale. Are you going to take the chance to see an event like the Madrid Spain Masters live?
The competition can be followed on the usual platforms, but if you want to join us, remember that entry will be free from 26th to 29th March. For those who also want to fill the stands at the Gallur for the semi-finals and finals, tickets are on sale by clicking here.
