Top five career moments of He Bing Jiao

The Chinese badminton sensation announced her retirement after winning silver at the 2024 Paris Games.

He Bing Jiao stunned the sporting world by announcing her sudden retirement after Paris Olympics 2024. At just 27, Jiao certainly had many more years of badminton ahead of her, but one can agree that she is signing off on a high.

Winning a silver medal at the Olympics and calling it quits is an incredible way to draw the curtains on a memorable career for the Chinese player. During her illustrious career, she won 12 gold medals and achieved the highest ranking of World No. #5 back in 2022.

She started playing badminton at the age of just 5 and was sent to Nanjing for tougher training. She entered the international arena in 2013 and, 11 years later, stands as an Olympic silver medalist and Asian Games bronze medalist.

On that note, let’s take a look at some of her career-defining moments:

2015 World Junior Championship

2015-16 was a crucial year for He Bing Jiao as she secured the gold medal in the women’s singles event at the World Junior Championships in Bilbao, Spain. This victory announced her as a force to reckon with in the senior circuit. The Chinese shuttler put all badminton fans and experts on notice with this bold triumph, marking the emergence of a new star in the sport. In many ways, this tournament heralded the rise of another Chinese badminton superstar.

Also Read: Top five career achievements of He BingJiao

2019 Asia Championship

Following the Junior Championship, Jiao had another fantastic campaign at the 2019 Badminton Asia Championships held in Wuhan, China. Despite being in one of the toughest fields, she eventually became the silver medalist, losing to Japan’s Yamaguchi in the final.

Although she did not win the top medal, this performance paved her way to being recognized as one of the best women’s singles players in Asia, defeating high-profile players like Okuhara and Cai on her way to glory.

2021 Tokyo Olympics

At her debut Olympic Games in Tokyo, Jiao entered the women’s singles event as the 8th seed. She lost in her bronze medal match to India’s PV Sindhu, finishing agonizingly short of an Olympic medal. Despite her strong showing, she narrowly missed the podium, finishing in fourth place. In the semi-final, she lost to Chen Yufei.

2022 Asian Games

He Bing Jiao progressed through the rounds after defeating Natsuki Naidara of Japan and R Maharjan of Nepal, then overcame PV Sindhu to reach the semifinals. She lost to eventual champion An Se-young in the semifinals but won Bronze. Additionally, He Bing Jiao was part of the Chinese women’s team that won silver medals at the 2018 and 2022 Asian Games.

2024 Paris Olympics

The heartbreak of Tokyo turned into jubilation for He Bing Jiao in Paris. The 27-year-old shuttler had an impressive campaign, remaining unbeaten throughout her group stage matches.

In the knockout rounds, she defeated Sindhu in the Round of 16 and Chen Yufei, the defending champion, in the quarterfinals. Jiao was slightly fortunate in the semi-final, as her opponent, Carolina Marin, had to withdraw midway due to an injury after trailing for the majority of the first half.

In the final, she lost to South Korea’s An Se-young, with the scores reading, thus capping off the tournament with a historic silver.

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