Hou Jiachang (; born 1942) is a Chinese former badminton player, born in Dutch East Indies.

Early life

Hou was introduced to the sport of Badminton by his father when he was 8 years old. After high school in Semarang, Hou went to China in 1960 for further studies at Guangzhou Sport University.

Playing career

It 1960, he joined the Guangdong provincial team. It was the time of

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

in China and he rarely had any chance of competing in foreign tournaments. His first appearance at the International level came at

GANEFO The Games of the New Emerging Forces (GANEFO; ) were the games set up by Indonesia as a counter to the Olympic Games. Established for the athletes of the so-called "emerging nations" (mainly socialist states and newly independent former colonies) ...

in 1963 where he won Men's doubles championship with Tang Xianhu and a silver medal at the singles event. In 1965, Chinese team visited Denmark and outlasted the top Danish players such as

Erland Kops Erland Kops (14 January 1937 – 18 February 2017) was a badminton player from Denmark who won numerous major international singles and doubles titles from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. Early life Kops was born in 1937. His uncles were ...

. In 1966, the Chinese whitewashed the Danish team 4–0 in front of 5,000 spectators in Beijing. In that friendly match, Hou partnered Fu Hanxun and won in straight games 15–6, 15–4 against

Svend Pri Svend Pri (earlier Svend Andersen; March 18, 1945 – June 8, 1983) was a Danish badminton player who won numerous major titles from the mid-1960s through the mid-1970s. Career His play was marked by great power, tenacity, and tactical astu ...

and Per Walsøe. In 1972, Hou became a member of CCP and joined the National Badminton Team. He participated at the First King Mahendra Memorial International Friendship which took place in Nepalese capital of Kathmandu, where he won singles as well doubles titles. In 1973, Hou along with his team went to England and dominated the English players, winning all the disciplines except Mixed doubles. Meeting the Danish players again in a friendly encounter in 1973, Chinese team won 10–0, where Hou defeated Svend Pri. He also defeated

Punch Gunalan Datuk Punch Gunalan (4 February 1944 – 15 August 2012) was a Malaysian badminton player, who achieved success in both singles and doubles competitions. Badminton career Gunalan was a talented right-hander who spent what might have been some ...

in a tie with Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. It was only in 1974 when IBF allowed Chinese players to compete in Asian Games held in Tehran. He emerged champion in Singles event, where he defeated his compatriot Fang Kaixiang and helped his team in winning the team event gold medal against Indonesia. At the age of 34, in 1976, Hou won the Asian Championship, defeating

Liem Swie King Liem Swie King (; born 28 February 1956) is an Indonesian badminton player who excelled from the late 1970s through the mid-1980s. He won the All England in 1978, 1979 and 1981. He was one of the world's leading singles players of his era. A w ...

in the final. He was crowned the Men's doubles World Champions in 1978 where he partnered Yu Yaodong and beat Thai pair in the final. He was felicitated with trophy by then Vice-Premier of China

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping also Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng (). (22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese statesman, revolutionary, and political theorist who served as the paramount leader of the People's R ...

after the match.

Coaching career

Hou retired in 1979 and was the head coach of the Chinese team until 1993. A three-time national champion, he is credited with 15 World Championship titles as well as 4 Thomas Cup conquests. He also coached United States' players in 1994.

Playing style

As described by

Eddy Choong Dato' Choong Ewe Beng (29 May 1931 – 28 January 2013) was a Malaysian badminton player. He was David Choong's brother and they played men's doubles together. Early life Choong Ewe Beng, also known as Eddy, was born on 29 May 1931, and was ...

, Hou had an uncanny sense of anticipation plus a wide variety of strokes. He played less of a power game and his defence is impenetrable, very solid.

Awards

In 1986, the International Badminton Federation honoured Hou Jiachang with the IBF Distinguished Service Award. Hou was inducted into the

International Badminton Federation The Badminton World Federation, aka BWF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport of badminton approved by the International Olympic Committee. It was founded on 5 July 1934 as the International Badminton Federat ...

(IBF, currently

BWF BWF may refer to: Sports organisations Badminton * Badminton World Federation, an international governing body for badminton Professional wrestling * Brazilian Wrestling Federation, a Brazilian Professional wrestling promotion. * British Wrestling ...

)

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

in 2002.

Achievements

World Championships

Asian Games

Asian Championships

Invitational Tournament

Book

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hou, Jiachang 1942 births Living people Sportspeople from Semarang Badminton players from Central Java People from Meixian District Badminton players from Fujian Chinese male badminton players Badminton players at the 1974 Asian Games Badminton players at the 1978 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for China Asian Games silver medalists for China Asian Games bronze medalists for China Asian Games medalists in badminton Medalists at the 1974 Asian Games Medalists at the 1978 Asian Games Chinese badminton coaches 20th-century Chinese sportsmen