Viktor Axelsen's projected path to gold medal at Paris Olympics 2024

Viktor Axelsen will defend his gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) conducted the draw for the badminton events at the Paris 2024 Olympics on Friday in Kuala Lumpur. The draws for men’s singles (MS), women’s singles (WS), women’s doubles (WD) and mixed doubles (XD) took place, but the men’s doubles (MD) draw was not conducted.

41 male shuttlers participated in the men’s singles draw, which divided them into 16 groups from A to P. Defending champion Viktor Axelsen, who is seeded second, has a relatively easy group, but the knockout rounds will require his best performance.

This year, Viktor Axelsen has struggled with injuries and has lost several matches. Let’s find out about the road to the gold medal match for Viktor Axelsen:

Group Stage: Nhat Nguyen, Misha Zilberman and Prince Dahal

Viktor Axelsen [2] is placed in Group P along with Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen (WR 43), Israel’s Misha Zilberman (WR 59) and Nepal’s Prince Dahal (WR 172). All the lower-ranked opponents will have an uphill battle against the defending champion.

Round of 16: Bye

The defending champion is most likely to receive a bye for this round. As only 13 players were seeded, three shuttlers will receive a bye.

Quarter-Finals: Loh Kean Yew or Li Shi Feng

In the quarter-finals, Viktor Axelsen could potentially go up against Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew [10] or China’s Li Shi Feng [6]. Both of them have an easy group, before they go up against each other to face the Danish shuttler.

Semi-Finals: Kodai Naraoka or Jonatan Christie

Japan’s Kodai Naraoka [5] or Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie [3] would be potential opponents for Viktor in the semis. A heavyweight battle is on the cards, as both Naraoka and Christie will give their best to get past Axelsen.

Final: Shi Yu Qi or Anders Antonsen

Axelsen will face the winner of the upper half of the draw in the gold medal match. The upper half includes China’s Shi Yu Qui, who is ranked 1st in the world and will be up for the challenge. The World No. 1 has won four world tour titles in 2024.

Viktor Axelsen’s compatriot Antonsen, on the other hand, has also produced some great results on the world tour and ranks fourth in the world. It will be interesting to witness an all-Danish final at Paris 2024. Axelsen will be eyeing his third Olympic medal. The badminton events will begin on July 27 and the group phase will continue till July 31.

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