Zhang Jun (badminton)

Zhang Jun (; born November 26, 1977 in Suzhou, Jiangsu) is a former male badminton player from the People's Republic of China. He is now a coach with the Chinese national team following his retirement from international play.

Career

As a doubles specialist, the solidly built Zhang Jun won several international men's doubles titles with compatriot Zhang Wei including the Swiss (1998), China (2001), and Thailand (2005) Opens. However, the majority of his titles, and the most prestigious ones, came in mixed doubles with the formidable Gao Ling. These included consecutive gold medals at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games, earned by surviving a number of tight matches, particularly in 2000 when they were on the verge of elimination in the semifinals. In similar fashion, Zhang and Gao captured the 2001 IBF World Championships by squeezing past the brilliant Kim Dong-moon and partner Ra Kyung-min 17-16 in the third game. Zhang's other titles with Gao included three victories (2001, 2003, and 2006) at the prestigious All-England Championships; the Badminton Asia Championships in 2002; the China Masters in 2005; and the China (2002, 2003), Japan (2003), Indonesia (2004), Malaysia (2004, 2006), Thailand (2005), Singapore (2005), and German (2006) Opens.

Zhang had the honor of being an Olympic torch carrier at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Games.

References

External links

• - Badminton World Federation

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