Viktor Axelsen (born 4 January 1994) is a Danish
badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...
player. He is a two-time
Olympic Champion, two-time
World Champion, and four-time
European Champion. He has held the No. 1
BWF World Ranking
The BWF World Ranking is the official ranking of the Badminton World Federation for badminton players who participate in tournaments sanctioned by Badminton World Federation. It is used to determine the qualification for the BWF World Championships ...
in men's singles for a total of 183 weeks (as of August 2024), and he is the current world No. 4. Throughout his career, Axelsen has won every single major title in both team and individual events at least once (World Tour
Super 1000 level or higher), except for
Sudirman Cup
The Sudirman Cup is an international badminton mixed team competition contested by member countries of the Badminton World Federation, the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every two years since the inaugural tourn ...
(where his team won Bronze in
2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
).
Axelsen won the World Championships in
2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
and
2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
, becoming the only non-Asian male player besides
Thomas Lund to win the title twice. He is also the back-to-back reigning Olympic Champion, winning the gold medals in men's singles at the
2020 Tokyo Olympics and
2024 Paris Olympics
The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...
after his bronze medal in
2016 Rio Olympics, thereby becoming the most successful badminton men’s singles player in
Olympic history.
Axelsen has led
Denmark team to win all
European Mixed Team Championships since 2015 and all
European Men's Team Championships since 2012. On individual levels, he won three European Championships titles in
2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
,
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
, and
2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
, and a gold medal at the European Games in
2023
Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
. He also won the
2010 World Junior Championships, becoming the only non-Asian singles player to win the title. Axelsen held the world number one position in men's singles for a total of 183 weeks, making it the third-longest reign in badminton history, trailing only
Lee Chong Wei (398) and
Lin Dan (211). He is the current recipient of the
BWF Male Player of the Year award, having won the award three times since 2020.
Early life
Axelsen was born in
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185,480 while Odense Municipality had a population of 210, ...
, to Henrik Axelsen and Gitte Lundager. At six years old, his father introduced him to badminton, playing the games at the Odense badminton club.
He lived with his father after his parents divorced, and then lived alone in Copenhagen at the age of 17 and joined the national team. His father ran a small advertising agency for a number of years, but now works full time as a manager for his son. His mother has a shop in central Odense with a hairdressing salon, cosmetics, and fashion clothing. He was named the 2004 Player of the Year by the Odense badminton club.
Career
2006–2011: Early career and World Junior title
Axelsen's achievements began when he won the National junior event in the boys' singles and doubles in his age group in 2006 and 2008.
He later emerged victorious at the 2009 German Junior and also at the
European U17 Championships.
He made his debut in the senior international tournament at the
2009 Denmark Open playing in the men's doubles event with
Steffen Rasmussen.
In January 2010, Axelsen who played from the qualification round, manage to reach the finals at the
Swedish International tournament, and finished as the runner-up after losing to
Indra Bagus Ade Chandra in straight games 15–21, 12–21. He competed at the
World Junior Championships in
Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...
,
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, claimed the boys' singles title by defeating the No.1 seed, China's
Huang Yuxiang in the quarter-finals, India's
B. Sai Praneeth in the semis and
Kang Ji-wook of Korea in the final.
In October, he claimed his first international senior title at the age of just sixteen, winning the
Cyprus International The Cyprus International in badminton is an international open held in Cyprus
Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitica ...
. A few weeks later he entered his first
Super Series event in singles, the 2010
Denmark Open; making it through the qualifying stages before losing out to compatriot and eventual winner
Jan Ø. Jørgensen
Jan Østergaard Jørgensen (born 31 December 1987) is a Danish retired badminton player who played for SIF (Skovshoved) in the national league. He won the men's singles title at the 2014 European Badminton Championships, 2014 European Championshi ...
in the second round.
In 2011, Axelsen secured gold at the
European Junior Championships, defeating teammate
Rasmus Fladberg 21–8, 17–21, 21–13 in the final. He took a silver medal at the
2011 BWF World Junior Championships, losing the title to Malaysia's
Zulfadli Zulkiffli, coming in second place.
2012–2014: First Grand Prix title, European and World bronze
In early 2012, Axelsen moved to
Valby
Valby () is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. It is in the southwestern corner of Copenhagen Municipality, and has a mixture of different types of housing. This includes apartment blocks, terraced housing, area ...
, in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
, and started training at Brøndby elite center.
Axelsen finished runner-up at the
French Open
The French Open (), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam ...
in Paris, losing in the final to
Liew Daren
Liew Daren (born 6 August 1987) is a Malaysian former badminton player. His biggest success throughout his career is having won the 2012 French Super Series, 2012 French Open Super Series. He reached a career high ranking of World No.10. He a ...
18–21, 17–21. He also won a bronze medal at the
2012 European Championships, losing the semi-final in three games to Sweden's
Henri Hurskainen 21–18, 18–21, 17–21.
In 2014, Axelsen won his first Grand Prix title at the
Swiss Open, beating China's
Tian Houwei in the final 21–7, 16–21, 25–23. Axelsen won a bronze medal at the
2014 BWF World Championships
The 2014 BWF World Championships was a badminton tournament which was held from 25 to 31 August 2014 at the Ballerup Super Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Host city selection
Copenhagen and Macau submitted bids for this of championships. Both citi ...
and also a bronze medal again at the
2014 European Championships.
2015–2016: European champion, Olympic bronze, and Superseries title
In 2015, Axelsen finished runners-up at the
Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold, and three Super Series events:
India Open,
Australian Open
The Australian Open (stylized ΛO) is a tennis tournament organised by Tennis Australia annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is chronologically the first of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Sl ...
, and
Japan Open. He qualified to compete at the
Super Series Finals held in Dubai, and again finished as the runner-up. Axelsen featured in Denmark's winning team at the
European Mixed Team Championships in
Leuven
Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipalit ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
. At the
Sudirman Cup
The Sudirman Cup is an international badminton mixed team competition contested by member countries of the Badminton World Federation, the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every two years since the inaugural tourn ...
, the team finished in the quarter finals lost 2–3 to Japanese team, where he played in the second matches. He ended the 2015 season ranked as world number 6.
In 2016, Axelsen earned his first European crown in May 2016, beating compatriot and defending champion
Jan Ø. Jørgensen
Jan Østergaard Jørgensen (born 31 December 1987) is a Danish retired badminton player who played for SIF (Skovshoved) in the national league. He won the men's singles title at the 2014 European Badminton Championships, 2014 European Championshi ...
with 21–11, 21–16 in the final of the 25th edition of the
European Championships
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
, the first in France at La Roche-sur-Yon. He was also part of the historic Danish team winning the first ever
Thomas Cup
The Thomas Cup, sometimes referred as World Men's Team Championships, is an international badminton competition among teams representing member nations of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), the sport's global governing body. The championships h ...
title in 2016. Axelsen won five of his six played singles matches in the team tournament, including the match against Indonesia's experienced player
Tommy Sugiarto in the final (21–17, 21–18) setting up a dramatic and historic 3–2 victory for Denmark over
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
.
In the 2016 Rio Olympics, he won the bronze medal by beating
Lin Dan from China 21–15, 12–21, 21–17.
2017: World champion, second Superseries Finals title, World number 1
In 2017, Axelsen won the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
in
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
in straight games against Lin Dan (22–20, 21–16) and became the third Danish player to ever become a world champion (Peter Rasmussen 1997 in Glasgow & Flemming Delfs 1977 in Sweden).
Axelsen, with a record of 4–3, is the only top twenty player to hold a winning record against Lin Dan, head-to-head.
Axelsen followed up his victory in Glasgow by winning the finals of the
Japan Open tournament in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
over
Lee Chong Wei of
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
in three sets on 23 September, propelling him to the top of the
BWF World Ranking
The BWF World Ranking is the official ranking of the Badminton World Federation for badminton players who participate in tournaments sanctioned by Badminton World Federation. It is used to determine the qualification for the BWF World Championships ...
s.
2018–2019: Second European Championships title
In 2018, Axelsen participated in the
European Men's and Women's Team Badminton Championships
The European Men's and Women's Team Badminton Championships is a tournament organized by the Badminton Europe (BE), held once every two years to crown the best badminton men's and women's national teams in Europe.
Hosts
Medalists
Medal table
...
and got a gold after suffering from a foot injury. He represented
Denmark
Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
in the
2018 Thomas & Uber Cup
The 2018 Thomas & Uber Cup (officially known as the 2018 BWF Thomas & Uber Cup) was the 30th edition of the Thomas Cup and the 27th edition of the Uber Cup, the biennial international badminton championship contested by the men and women's nation ...
. In the group stage, he defeated
Vladimir Malkov from Russia and from Algeria. In the group stage match against
Lee Chong Wei, he lost by two straight games 9–21, 19–21. In the quarter-finals match against South Korea, he defeated
Son Wan-ho, but he lost to the favorite and former world no. 2,
Kento Momota
is a former Japanese badminton player. He has won several major badminton tournaments including becoming a two time World Champion, becoming a two time Asian Champion, and winning one All England title. Momota received a Guinness World Reco ...
in semi-finals. Denmark was then eliminated in semi-finals and failed to defend the title in the
2016 event. In August, Axelsen was unable to defend his
world title where he was defeated by two-time World Champion and reigning Olympic Champion
Chen Long in the quarter-finals.
2020: All England Open title
Axelsen started the season by competing in the
Indonesia Masters. He finished as the semi-finalist after losing to home player the seventh seed
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (; born 20 October 1996) is an Indonesian badminton player. He first rose to senior prominence when he won the bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games, having won a 2014 Youth Olympic bronze in 2014. At the 2020 Olympics, ...
in two straight games. In February, he managed to defend his title in the
Barcelona Spain Masters after beating the Thai youngster
Kunlavut Vitidsarn in straight games 21–16, 21–13. In March, he won the
All England Open, making history as the first European and Dane to lift the men's singles trophy since 1999.
2021: Olympic gold, first Denmark Open title and "Male Player Of The Year" award
Axelsen participated at the
European Mixed Team Championships in
Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
, and helped the team to win the gold medal. In March, Axelsen entered the
All England Open as the defending champion. He reached the final, but lost to 6th seed
Lee Zii Jia
Lee Zii Jia ( zh, s=李梓嘉, poj=Lí Chú-ka, p=Lǐ Zǐjiā, born 29 March 1998) is a Malaysian badminton player. He is a bronze medalist at the Olympic Games, Asian champion and All England champion. He is best known for his smash, especi ...
of Malaysia in a grueling 3-game match (29–30, 22–20, 9–21). He then took part at the
Kyiv European Championships, advanced to the final, but the organizers decided to cancel the finals, since Axelsen tested positive for COVID-19. Consequently, he was barred from playing the final match with his compatriot
Anders Antonsen
Anders Antonsen (born 27 April 1997) is a Danish badminton player. He is a three-time World Championships medalist, two-time European Champion, and he has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the men’s singles discipline of BWF World Ranking.
He ...
and was awarded a silver medal. He won the gold medal in the
2020 Olympic Games
The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...
in Tokyo, Japan, beating the defending champion
Chen Long in straight games in the final and without dropping a single game in the entire tournament.
In October, he won the
Denmark Open title, defeating the top seed and world no.1
Kento Momota
is a former Japanese badminton player. He has won several major badminton tournaments including becoming a two time World Champion, becoming a two time Asian Champion, and winning one All England title. Momota received a Guinness World Reco ...
in a thrilling final match in three games. The match lasted 93 minutes. This was Axelsen's only second ever victory over Momota in their sixteen encounters. He then won his second super 1000 title of the year at the Indonesian Open by beating Singapore's
Loh Kean Yew. For his achievements, Axelsen regain the number 1 spot at the BWF World ranking and have been named the 2020/2021 BWF Male Player of the Year. He then won the season ending of the
2021 BWF World Tour Finals
The 2021 BWF World Tour Finals (officially known as the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2021 for sponsorship reasons) was the final tournament of the 2021 BWF World Tour. It was held from 1 to 5 December 2021 in Bali, Indonesia and had a total prize o ...
, beating the current Eddy Chong Most Promising Player,
Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the final in straight games, adding another victory to his undeniably successful year.
The following month, Axelsen crashed out in the first round to the eventual World Champion
Loh Kean Yew in the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
, losing 21–14, 9–21, 6–21 in 54 minutes.
2022: Second World Championship title and "Male Player of The Year" award
Axelsen started the 2022 season as the world number one on the BWF World Ranking. He reached the semi-finals of the
German Open 2022 where he narrowly lost in three games (13–21, 21–12, 20–22) to Indian player
Lakshya Sen
Lakshya Sen (born 16 August 2001) is an Indian badminton player. He's a former World Junior No. 1. Sen is a bronze medalist at the World Championships, a gold medalist at the Thomas Cup, a silver medalist at the Asian Games and a gold and si ...
.
On March 20, Axelsen won the
All England Open in convincing fashion without dropping a single game in the entire tournament. He defeated Lakshya Sen in the finals (21–10, 21–15).
On 30 April, Axelsen won his third
European Championship by defeating compatriot
Anders Antonsen
Anders Antonsen (born 27 April 1997) is a Danish badminton player. He is a three-time World Championships medalist, two-time European Champion, and he has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the men’s singles discipline of BWF World Ranking.
He ...
, 21–17, 21–15, in
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, Spain. He joined
Flemming Delfs
Flemming Delfs (born 7 September 1951) is a Danish badminton player who was world no. 1 in 1977. He won the All England Championship, the European and the World Championship in the 1970s.
Career
Delfs is especially noteworthy for winning men's ...
,
Poul-Erik Høyer and
as Danish three-time winners in men's singles. Despite the win, Axelsen was not satisfied with the win, saying that there were many silly mistakes from both players.
On July 3, Axelsen won the
Malaysia Open for the first time by defeating
Kento Momota
is a former Japanese badminton player. He has won several major badminton tournaments including becoming a two time World Champion, becoming a two time Asian Champion, and winning one All England title. Momota received a Guinness World Reco ...
21–4, 21–7 in the final, becoming the first Dane to win the event in 15 years.
The next day, Axelsen withdrew from the
2022 Malaysia Masters, which was the next event on the tour. Axelsen then withdrew from the Singapore Open, taking a break in Singapore before moving on to the World Championships in August.
In August, Axelsen won the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
, defeating Thailand's three-time world junior champion
Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the final, 21–5, 21–16. This was a second world championships title for Axelsen, adding on to the gold medal he won in 2017.
In mid October, Axelsen took part in his home event as the defending champion, the
Denmark Open. In the quarterfinals, he lost to his training partner and former world champion
Loh Kean Yew in a tame defeat, losing 17–21, 10–21 in just 30 minutes. Prior to this match, Axelsen had held a 39 match-winning streak, and his only loss in 2022 so far was to a narrow loss to
Lakshya Sen
Lakshya Sen (born 16 August 2001) is an Indian badminton player. He's a former World Junior No. 1. Sen is a bronze medalist at the World Championships, a gold medalist at the Thomas Cup, a silver medalist at the Asian Games and a gold and si ...
in the German Open semi-final. After the match, Axelsen declared that he did not play up to his usual standard, going as far to describe his own play as "embarrassing", apologizing to the home crowd for his performance in the interview.
However, he won the
French Open
The French Open (), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam ...
title, a week after the Denmark Open. He defeated
Rasmus Gemke in the final, in straight games 21–14 21–15, without dropping a game in the entire tournament. For his amazing performance in this year, only losing two completed matches, he was crowned as the BWF Male Player Of The Year, for the 2nd time after winning it last year.
In the
World Tour Finals, which had initially been scheduled in
Guangzhou
Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
but was later moved to
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...
, number one seed Axelsen went on to become champion after defeating
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (; born 20 October 1996) is an Indonesian badminton player. He first rose to senior prominence when he won the bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games, having won a 2014 Youth Olympic bronze in 2014. At the 2020 Olympics, ...
in straight sets, 21–13 21–14,
ending 2022 with year-end number 1 ranking, 6 titles, and only 3 losses (out of 55 matches).
2023: Continued domination despite recurring injuries — World Tour Finals title and three Super 1000 titles
In the inaugural tournament and Super 1000 event of the year,
Malaysia Open, Viktor Axelsen successfully defended his championship title by defeating opponents
Rasmus Gemke,
Liew Daren
Liew Daren (born 6 August 1987) is a Malaysian former badminton player. His biggest success throughout his career is having won the 2012 French Super Series, 2012 French Open Super Series. He reached a career high ranking of World No.10. He a ...
,
Kenta Nishimoto, and finalist
Kodai Naraoka, dropping only one game in the opening round against Gemke. In the three matches leading up to the title, Axelsen did not concede a game or more than 7 points in the opening games. Subsequently, Axelsen participated in the
Indian Open, a Super 750 event, where he encountered minimal resistance en route to the final. Notable victories over
Srikanth Kidambi
Srikanth Kidambi (born 7 February 1993) is an Indian badminton player. Known for his powerful smashes and quick footwork, he became the first Indian male to reach the World No. 1 ranking in the BWF World Rankings in April 2018. He made history ...
,
Shi Yuqi
Shi Yuqi (; Mandarin pronunciation: ; born 28 February 1996) is a Chinese badminton player.Shi won his first Superseries title in the 2016 French Open. At the 2017 All England Open, he defeated 6-time champion Lin Dan to reach the final, and r ...
, and
Rasmus Gemke secured his place in the championship match where he was bested by the eighth seed
Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the final, with a final score of 20-22, 21-10, 12-21.
In the
All England Open tournament held in March, Axelsen faced an upset exit in the second round, losing to unseeded
Ng Tze Yong
Ng Tze Yong ( zh, t=黃智勇, p=Huáng Zhìyǒng; born 16 May 2000) is a Malaysian badminton player. Ng won a bronze medal at the 2021 Sudirman Cup. He also helped Malaysian team to win gold at the 2022 Badminton Asia Team Championships and ...
in a closely contested three-game match. Later the same month, he advanced to the semi-finals of the Swiss Open but was defeated by
Chou Tien-chen in two games. Participating in the
Sudirman Cup
The Sudirman Cup is an international badminton mixed team competition contested by member countries of the Badminton World Federation, the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every two years since the inaugural tourn ...
, Axelsen helped the Denmark team reach the quarter-finals. However, Denmark suffered a 1-3 loss to Malaysia, with Axelsen sustaining a left hamstring injury during the first game against
Lee Zii Jia
Lee Zii Jia ( zh, s=李梓嘉, poj=Lí Chú-ka, p=Lǐ Zǐjiā, born 29 March 1998) is a Malaysian badminton player. He is a bronze medalist at the Olympic Games, Asian champion and All England champion. He is best known for his smash, especi ...
. This injury occurred just after approximately 5 minutes of play with the score tied at 4-4.
Consequently, Axelsen opted out of the
Singapore Open in June, citing the need for rehabilitation due to his muscle strain. He claimed on Twitter that the Badminton World Federation intended to fine him $5,000 for his absence, while he was engaged in recovery. However, the BWF dismissed his statement as "inaccurate and out of context". Later in the same month, despite just recovering from his injury, Axelsen participated in the
Indonesia Open, a Super 1000 event, in which he successfully defended his title by overcoming opponents
Weng Hongyang,
Wang Tzu-wei
Wang Tzu-wei (; born 27 February 1995) is a Taiwanese badminton player. He won his first international title at the 2014 New Zealand Open tournament. Wang competed at the 2017 Summer Universiade, where he won the gold medals in the men's singl ...
, Chou Tien-chen, and the second-seeded local favorite
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (; born 20 October 1996) is an Indonesian badminton player. He first rose to senior prominence when he won the bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games, having won a 2014 Youth Olympic bronze in 2014. At the 2020 Olympics, ...
. Notably, Axelsen achieved these victories without dropping a single game.
Moving to July, Axelsen secured a significant victory by winning the
European Games men's singles title for the first time. In the final, he triumphed over the fifth-seeded
Christo Popov after a three-game battle. Due to fatigue, Axelsen opted to withdraw from the
Canada Open. Nonetheless, he continued his winning streak by claiming victory in the
Japan Open, a Super 750 event. Axelsen achieved this feat by defeating opponents
Lin Chun-yi,
Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo,
Prannoy H. S., Kodai Naraoka, and the fifth-seeded
Jonatan Christie.
Entering the world championship as the top seed and defending champion, Axelsen experienced an unexpected loss to the ninth seed Prannoy H. S. in the quarter-finals. Subsequently, in September, he secured his maiden
China Open title, marking his third Super 1000 title of the year. The victory came in a 2-0 win over the host nation opponent,
Lu Guangzu, in the finals. Axelsen strategically withdrew from the Arctic Open to preserve his energy for the Denmark Open, held in his birthplace city,
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185,480 while Odense Municipality had a population of 210, ...
. Despite advancing to the second round and defeating
Magnus Johannesen, he retired from the tournament.
In the French Open, Axelsen faced another setback, retiring prematurely in the first round against Ng Ka Long due to injury. Facing potential ineligibility for the World Tour Finals due to recurring injuries and retirements throughout the year, Axelsen made a comeback in November, clinching the inaugural
Japan Masters title by defeating
Shi Yuqi
Shi Yuqi (; Mandarin pronunciation: ; born 28 February 1996) is a Chinese badminton player.Shi won his first Superseries title in the 2016 French Open. At the 2017 All England Open, he defeated 6-time champion Lin Dan to reach the final, and r ...
in the final. This Super 500 tournament featured the participation of all top 10 players, and Axelsen's victory propelled him to the fifth position in the race to the World Tour Finals, securing his eligibility for the event.
During the
World Tour Finals, Axelsen finished second in the group stage with a single loss to Shi Yuqi. In the semi-finals, he comfortably defeated his compatriot
Anders Antonsen
Anders Antonsen (born 27 April 1997) is a Danish badminton player. He is a three-time World Championships medalist, two-time European Champion, and he has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the men’s singles discipline of BWF World Ranking.
He ...
in two games. Advancing to the final, Axelsen faced Shi Yuqi once again, overcoming an earlier defeat and the strong support of the host nation for his opponent. In a remarkable achievement, Axelsen secured his third consecutive World Tour Finals title, a feat previously accomplished only by
Lee Chong Wei. The notable win at the World Tour Finals secured Axelsen a record prize of US$200,000. This propelled him ahead of the accomplished
An Se-young to claim the top spot as the highest prize money earner on the circuit for the year for the second time in a row, amassing a total of US$645,095, more than any other player earning in a single year.
2024: Second Olympic gold medal
Participating in the inaugural tournament of the season
Malaysia Open, Axelsen advanced to the semi-finals after defeating
Loh Kean Yew, Lee Cheuk Yiu, Ng Ka Long, respectively. In the semi-finals, he lost to Shi Yuqi after three games despite an early lead of 5–1 in the final game, therefore failing to defend his championship. Axelsen was part of the gold-winning Danish men's team at the
European Men's Team Championships despite not playing a match. He was seeded number one in
French Open
The French Open (), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam ...
and
All England Open, however suffered upset losses against Wang Tzu-wei in the second round and Anthony Sinisuka Ginting in the quarter-finals, respectively. In April, Axelsen entered the
European Championships
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
as the top seed, effortlessly advanced to the semi-finals without dropping a game before losing to the fourth seed
Toma Junior Popov in three games, therefore failing to defend his championship and ending up with a bronze medal. In the
Thomas Cup
The Thomas Cup, sometimes referred as World Men's Team Championships, is an international badminton competition among teams representing member nations of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), the sport's global governing body. The championships h ...
, his Denmark team lost 1–3 to Chinese Taipei in the quarter-finals, in which Axelsen was defeated by Chou Tien-chen in three games.
In the
Malaysia Masters, Axelsen reached the final without dropping a game against
Koki Watanabe,
Panitchaphon Teeraratsakul, Chou Tien-chen, and Lu Guangzu. He then went on to defeat the fifth seed Lee Zii Jia in the final match with a scoreline of 21–6, 20–22, 21–13, therefore winning his maiden BWF title of the year, which is also his second Malaysia Masters after six years. In the following tournament,
Singapore Open, Axelsen withdrew ahead of the semi-final match against the sixth seed
Li Shifeng, citing "a small rollover" on the right ankle. He then decided to skip all the tournaments leading up to the Olympics in order to focus on the preparations of this paramount event. This included withdrawing from
Indonesia Open, where he was the defending champion, thus forfeiting 12,000 points and losing his world number one ranking to Shi Yuqi for the first time since December 2021, ending a 132-week tenure.
Entering the
Paris Olympics as the second seed, Axelsen advanced effortlessly through the group stage with straight wins against unseeded players
Prince Dahal,
Misha Zilberman, and
Nhat Nguyen. Benefiting from a favorable knockout stage draw, he received a bye to the quarter-finals, where he overcame the tenth seed Loh Kean Yew. In the a remarkable semi-final against unseeded Lakshya Sen, Axelsen saved three game points to win the first game 22–20 and overcame a 7–0 deficit to take the second game 21–14. Advancing to the final, Axelsen faced the eighth seed and reigning World Champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who had defeated top players Shi Yuqi and Lee Zii Jia en route to the final. Despite Vitidsarn's impressive performance leading up to the final, Axelsen secured a commanding victory with scores of 21–11, 21–11, thereby successfully defending his Olympics gold medal.
This achievement made Axelsen the only non-Asian badminton player in history and the only men's singles player after Lin Dan to win two Olympic gold medals. In the month following his Olympic gold medal in Paris, he competed in the
Hong Kong Open, marking his return to BWF Tour. He advanced to the final, and secured a dominant victory over unseeded
Lei Lanxi, winning 21–9, 21–12. This triumph made him the first Danish men's singles player to claim the Hong Kong Open title in 27 years.
2025
Axelsen kicked-off the 2025 season as champion in the
India Open.
He won his second title of the year in
German Open, the first Super 300 tournament he won since 2021.
Personal life
In addition to his native
Danish, Axelsen is also a fluent speaker of
English and
Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
, giving himself a Chinese name of 安賽龍.
In August 2021, Axelsen decided to leave the Danish national team in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
and move with his family from Denmark to
Dubai
Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
. There he could train at the NAS Sports Complex (Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex). Axelsen himself stated several reasons for the move to Dubai; for instance shorter travel time to most events in Asia, which allows him more remaining time to rest or warm-up. Another reason was the health factor since he suffers from asthma and acute rhinitis. This makes it more comfortable in Asia than in Europe, especially Denmark, which tends to be cooler and where his allergy can be triggered faster by things such as flower pollen, dust, or animal dander. And the other reason is the family factor. Axelsen wants to have more time with his family.
Axelsen's wife,
Natalia Koch Rohde, gave birth to a baby girl named Vega Rohde Axelsen on 15 October 2020. On 7 October 2022, she gave birth to her second baby girl named Aya Rohde Axelsen. Her father Henrik Rohde, who was head coach of the winning Skovshoved team in the Danish league in 2017, since moving to Dubai, is also helping with the coaching of her husband Viktor Axelsen.
Achievements
Olympic Games
''Men's singles''
BWF World Championships
''Men's singles''
European Games
''Men's singles''
European Championships
''Men's singles''
BWF World Junior Championships
''Boys' singles''
European Junior Championships
''Boys' singles''
BWF World Tour (27 titles, 6 runners-up)
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the
Badminton World Federation
The Badminton World Federation, aka BWF, is the international governing body for the sport of badminton approved by the International Olympic Committee. It was founded on 5 July 1934 as the International Badminton Federation with nine member ...
(BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, and the BWF Tour Super 100.
''Men's singles''
BWF Superseries (4 titles, 7 runners-up)
The BWF Superseries, which was launched on 14 December 2006 and implemented in 2007, was a series of elite badminton tournaments, sanctioned by the
Badminton World Federation
The Badminton World Federation, aka BWF, is the international governing body for the sport of badminton approved by the International Olympic Committee. It was founded on 5 July 1934 as the International Badminton Federation with nine member ...
(BWF). BWF Superseries levels were
Superseries and Superseries Premier. A season of Superseries consisted of twelve tournaments around the world that had been introduced since 2011. Successful players were invited to the Superseries Finals, which were held at the end of each year.
''Men's singles''
:
Superseries Finals tournament
:
Superseries Premier tournament
:
Superseries tournament
BWF Grand Prix (1 title, 1 runner-up)
The BWF Grand Prix had two levels, the
Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It was a series of badminton tournaments sanctioned by the
Badminton World Federation
The Badminton World Federation, aka BWF, is the international governing body for the sport of badminton approved by the International Olympic Committee. It was founded on 5 July 1934 as the International Badminton Federation with nine member ...
(BWF) and played between 2007 and 2017.
''Men's singles''
:
BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament
:
BWF Grand Prix tournament
BWF International Challenge/Series (4 titles, 2 runners-up)
''Men's singles''
:
BWF International Challenge
The BWF International Challenge is a grade 3 and level 1 tournament part of Continental Circuit of BWF tournaments along with International Series (level 2) and Future Series (level 3), sanctioned by Badminton World Federation (BWF) since 2007.
...
tournament
:
BWF International Series
The BWF International Series is a grade 3 and level 2 tournament part of Continental Circuit of BWF tournaments along with International Challenge (level 1) and Future Series (level 3), sanctioned by Badminton World Federation (BWF) since 2007.
...
tournament
Performance timeline
National team
* ''Junior level''
* ''Senior level''
Individual competitions
* ''Junior level''
* ''Senior level''
Career overview
Record against selected opponents
Record against Year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi-finalists, and Olympic quarter-finalists. Accurate as of
2 March 2025.
References
External links
*
*
Viktor Axelsen at BadmintonEurope.com*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Axelsen, Viktor
1994 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Odense
Badminton players from the Region of Southern Denmark
Danish male badminton players
Badminton players at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Badminton players at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Badminton players at the 2024 Summer Olympics
Olympic badminton players for Denmark
Olympic gold medalists for Denmark
Olympic bronze medalists for Denmark
Olympic medalists in badminton
Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics
World No. 1 badminton players
Badminton players at the 2023 European Games
European Games gold medalists for Denmark
European Games medalists in badminton
21st-century Danish sportsmen