Marcus Ellis (born 14 September 1989) is a British

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

player. He was the men's doubles champion in the English National Championships. Ellis and

Chris Langridge Christopher Phillip Langridge (born 2 May 1985) is a retired British badminton player. He competed for England at the 2014 Commonwealth Games where he won three medals. He represented Great Britain at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and won a bronze m ...

won a bronze medal in the men's doubles at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

in Rio de Janeiro, also gold medal at the

2018 Commonwealth Games The 2018 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXI Commonwealth Games and also known as Gold Coast 2018, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth that were held on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, bet ...

in Gold Coast, Australia. At the 2019 Minsk European Games, Ellis captured two gold medals; in the men's doubles with Langridge and in the mixed doubles event with Lauren Smith.

Personal life

Marcus Ellis, the youngest son of Sheila and John Ellis, was born on 14 September 1989 in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

. He has an elder brother James. Ellis started playing badminton aged seven when his father took him to the Colne Valley Leisure Centre in

Slaithwaite Slaithwaite , locally ''Slawit'' (Old Norse: Timber-fell clearing), is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies in the Colne Valley, lying acr ...

. Ellis was first educated at Clough Head Junior School in Huddersfield, before attending

Colne Valley High School Colne Valley High School is a mixed secondary school in the village of Linthwaite, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. It is named thus because it exists in the Colne Valley, one of several valleys that converge at the town of Huddersfield. ...

, a state comprehensive school in the village of

Linthwaite Linthwaite (known as ''Linfit'' in the local community) is a village in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated west of Huddersfield, on the A62 in the Colne Valley. The village to ...

. He attended high school with

Alex Smithies Alexander Smithies (born 5 March 1990) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Leicester City. Smithies is a product of the Huddersfield Town academy who first came into prominence during the 200 ...

, now the goalkeeper for Huddersfield Town Football Club. He then studied for 6 months at

Huddersfield New College Huddersfield New College is a former grammar school and current sixth form college located in Salendine Nook on the outskirts of Huddersfield, in the county of West Yorkshire, England. The current principal is Angela Williams. On 17 May 2016 the ...

before deciding to move away from Huddersfield at the age of 17 so he may train at the

National Badminton Centre Badminton England is the national governing body for the sport of badminton in England. It aims to govern, encourage and develop the sport throughout England. Originally established in 1893 as the Badminton Association of England in Portsmou ...

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

. Ellis lived in

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

Career

In the early years of his professional career, Ellis teamed up with a number of players in the doubles, such as

Tom Wolfenden Tom Wolfenden (born 23 February 1994) is a badminton player from England. He started playing badminton at aged 6, he won U-19 England national badminton championships five times, and became the England's Young Player of the year 2012-13. Achie ...

and Peter Mills in the men's doubles, and

Gabby Adcock Gabrielle Marie Adcock (née White; born 30 September 1990) is an English retired badminton player. Career Gabby started playing badminton aged 10 in the badminton club at her school and became a full-time player straight from school at 16. S ...

and

Mariana Agathangelou Mariana Agathangelou (born 14 August 1988) is a British badminton player. She competed for England in the mixed team event at the 2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games (Hindi: 2010 राष्ट्रमण्डल ख� ...

in the mixed. He won the men's doubles at the

Denmark International The Denmark Masters is an international badminton tournament held in Denmark. This tournament has been an International Challenge level. Another tournament for higher level in the country is Denmark Open The Denmark Open, or formerly known as D ...

in 2013 with

Paul van Rietvelde Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

. In September 2014, he teamed up with Chris Langridge. They won their first men's doubles title in December 2014 in the Italian Open, and their first title in the

English National Badminton Championships The English National Badminton Championships is a tournament organised by the Badminton England to crown the best badminton players in England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales ...

in February 2015, which they won again in 2016. They also won the

Welsh International The Welsh International is an international badminton championship held in Wales since 1928 and is thereby one of the oldest badminton tournaments in the world. The tournament was halted during World War II and until 1956, between 1960 and 1966, a ...

in 2015. They were defeated in the 2016 European Championships in

La Roche-sur-Yon La Roche-sur-Yon () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. It is the capital of the department. The demonym for its inhabitants is ''Yonnais''. History The town expanded significantly after Napo ...

in the semi-finals to gain a bronze. They have also won medals in the European Team Championships – a silver in the Mixed Team in 2015, and a bronze medal in the Men's Team in 2016. During the

in Rio, Ellis and Langridge were ranked No. 22 in the world, but they managed to win a bronze, the first medal in badminton men's doubles won by a British team at the Olympics. In 2017, he won his first Grand Prix tournament title at the Dutch Open in the mixed doubles event with Lauren Smith. At the

held on the

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, Ellis captured three medals – he won a gold in the men's doubles with

, which is England's first men's badminton double title at the Games in 40 years; a silver in the

mixed doubles Mixed doubles or mixed pairs is a form of mixed-sex sports that consists of teams of one man and one woman. This variation of competition is prominent in curling and racket sports, such as tennis, table tennis and badminton (where it is known as ...

with Lauren Smith; and also a bronze in the mixed team event. At the

2018 European Championships The 2018 European Championships were the first edition of the European Championships. It was a multi-sport event which took place in Berlin, Germany, and Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom (with Edinburgh hosting the diving events and Gleneagles ...

held in Huelva, Spain, he finished in the semi final, and settled for a bronze medal in the mixed doubles event with Smith after lose a match to Danish pair

Mathias Christiansen Mathias Christiansen (born 20 February 1994) is a Danish badminton player who joined the national team in July 2013. He competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics. Achievements European Games ''Mixed doubles'' European Championships ''Men's ...

and

Christinna Pedersen Christinna Pedersen (born 12 May 1986) is a Danish badminton player. Career Christinna Pedersen is a right-handed doubles specialist. From 2008 onwards, Pedersen paired with Joachim Fischer Nielsen in mixed doubles. The pair gained two Europ ...

in the rubber games. Ellis qualified to represent Great Britain at the 2019 European Games, played in the men's doubles with

and in the mixed doubles with Lauren Smith. Competed as the second seeds in the men's and mixed doubles event, he reached the finals in both events. In the men's doubles, Ellis and Langridge managed to claim the gold medal after beat the top seeds from Denmark

Kim Astrup Kim Astrup Sørensen (born 6 March 1992) is a Danish badminton player. As junior player, he won the bronze medal at the 2010 World Junior Championships in the boys' doubles. He later won a gold in the mixed doubles and bronze medals in the boys' ...

and

Anders Skaarup Rasmussen Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (born 15 February 1989) is a Danish badminton player. He joined the Denmark winning team at the 2016 Thomas Cup in Kunshan, China, where he and his teammates beating Indonesia 3–2 in the final. Rasmussen won the men's ...

in straight games 21–17, 21–10. He secured his second gold in the mixed doubles with Smith after beat their teammates the top seeds

Chris Adcock Christopher Thomas Adcock (born 27 April 1989) is a retired English badminton player. Adcock is currently sponsored by Yonex and YC Sports and plays for the University of Nottingham-based NBL team. He entered the National team in 2006, and late ...

and

with the score 21–14, 21–9. Ellis opened the 2020 season by achieved his biggest triumph as in just his second tournament of the season, he won his first Super 300 event in

Thailand Masters The Thailand Masters was a professional snooker tournament. Previously known as Asian Open and Thailand Open, it was a ranking tournament from 1989/90 to 2001/02. An event called the ''Thailand Masters'' also formed part of the ''World Series'' i ...

partnered with Lauren Smith. He and Smith then reached in to the quarter finals of

Spain Masters The Spain Masters ( es, Maestros de España) is an annual badminton tournament held in Spain. This tournament is part of the BWF World Tour tournaments and is leveled in BWF World Tour Super 300. Venue & host city * 2018–2020: Pavelló de la Va ...

and semi finals of All England Open. In October, Ellis and Chris Langridge won the men's doubles title at the

2020 Denmark Open The 2020 Denmark Open (officially known as the Danisa Denmark Open presented by Victor for sponsorship reasons) was a badminton tournament which took place at the Odense Sports Park in Denmark from 13 to 18 October 2020. It had a total purse of $ ...

, became the first English men's doubles pair in 45 years to win the

Denmark Open The Denmark Open, or formerly known as Danish Open, is an annual badminton tournament held in Denmark and organized by Badminton Denmark. The Denmark Open was part of the BWF Super Series Premier from 2011 to 2017. BWF categorised it as one of ...

. Ellis competed at the 2021 European Championships in Kyiv, Ukraine, and won a silver medal in the mixed doubles with Smith and a bronze in the men's doubles with Langridge. In July, he and Smith played at the

2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...

, but was eliminated in the quarter-finals. In 2022, Ellis competed at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

in Birmingham, England as mixed doubles second seed with his partner Lauren Smith. They progressed to the final, but lost to third seeded from Singapore

Terry Hee Terry Hee Yong Kai (; born 6 July 1995) is a Singaporean badminton player. In mixed doubles with Jessica Tan, Hee won his first World Tour title at the 2022 India Open. They repeated their success at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Early life ...

and

Jessica Tan Jessica Tan Soon Neo (; born 28 May 1966) is a Singaporean politician who has been serving as Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore since 2020. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), she has been the Member of Parliament ( ...

, settled for the silver medal. After the Commonwealth Games, Ellis had to withdraw for the next tournament due to a hip injury and planned surgery.

Achievements

Olympic Games

''Men's doubles''

Commonwealth Games

''Men's doubles'' ''Mixed doubles''

European Games

''Men's doubles'' ''Mixed doubles''

European Championships

''Men's doubles'' ''Mixed doubles''

BWF World Tour (9 titles, 3 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 (BWF) is the international governing body for the sport of badminton recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It was founded in 1934 as the International Badminton Federation (IBF) 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 doubles'' ''Mixed doubles''

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

(BWF) and played between 2007 and 2017. ''Mixed doubles'' : BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament : BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series (16 titles, 14 runners-up)

''Men's doubles'' ''Mixed doubles'' :

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 :

BWF Future Series The BWF Future Series is a grade 3 and level 3 tournaments part of Continental Circuit of BWF tournaments along with International Challenge (level 1) and International Series (level 2), sanctioned by Badminton World Federation (BWF) since 2007. ...

tournament

References

External links

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Marcus 1989 births Living people Sportspeople from Huddersfield English male badminton players Badminton players at the 2016 Summer Olympics Badminton players at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic badminton players of Great Britain Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in badminton Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Badminton players at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Badminton players at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Commonwealth Games silver medallists for England Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for England Commonwealth Games medallists in badminton Badminton players at the 2019 European Games European Games gold medalists for Great Britain European Games medalists in badminton Medallists at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 2022 Commonwealth Games