BWF Player Of The Year Awards 2020/2021

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The Badminton World Federation on Friday, 03rd December 2021 announced the list of winners in a virtually broadcasted event.

Men’s singles world no.1 Viktor Axelsen and women’s singles world no.1 Tai Tzu Ying have been named the BWF Male and Female Player of the Year respectively.

Due to COVID-19 disruptions over the last two years, the consideration period for the BWF Player of the Year was from November 2019 to 31 October 2021. BWF added two new award categories – Pair of the Year and Para-Badminton Pair of the Year.

The Dane was awarded for his unbelievable run that started from Barcelona Spain Masters in February 2020. The reigning Olympic gold medalist made it to 10 finals out of 11 tournaments, winning 7 of them.

Viktor said, “Thank you to my team, my coaches, my friends, my family, my competitors. This year has been really eventful. A few downs, but a lot of ups, with the Olympics being the biggest win, a dream coming true. This award gives me a lot of motivation to work harder.”

Tai Tzu Ying was awarded for her brilliant 2020-21 spell. The Taipei girl won the All England Open in 2020 and then continued her immaculate form at the three-tournament Asian Leg in January 2021. She made it to all three finals, clinched the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2020, and made it to the final of the Tokyo Olympics, she went down against China’s Chen Yu Fei and grabbed a silver medal.

Tai Tzu Ying said, “It’s a pity I can’t be in Indonesia for the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals. I never thought that I could win this award. I’ll continue to compete and try to achieve better results. I hope that fans will continue to support me.”

Winners List-

  • Male Player of the Year: Viktor Axelsen
  • Female Player of the Year: Tai Tzu Ying
  • Most improved player of the Year: Lee Yang and Wang Chi-Lin
  • Pair of the Year: Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu
  • Eddy Choong Most Promising Player: Kunlavut Vitidsarn
  • Male Para-Badminton Player of the Year: Qu Zimo
  • Female Para-Badminton Player of the Year: Leani Ratri Oktila
  • Para-Badminton Pair of the Year: Lucas Mazur and Faustine Noel

The Badminton Federation Awards Commission made a special mention of Kevin Cordon. The Guatemalan had an amazing journey across four Olympic Games. His exceptional run in Tokyo was ended by eventual gold medalist Viktor Axelsen in the semi-finals.