Zhang Ailing (; born 1957) is a retired

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 from China.

Career

In 1978 Zhang won women's singles at the rival "world championship" which was run by the short-lived

World Badminton Federation The World Badminton Federation is a former badminton organization, it was founded in February 1978 and ceased its operation on May 26, 1981 after it merged with the International Badminton Federation (now known as Badminton World Federation or BWF) ...

prior to China's entry into the International Badminton Federation (now

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 ...

). She was the dominant international singles player when China joined the IBF in 1981, winning the multi-sport

World Games The World Games are an international multi-sport event comprising sports and sporting disciplines that are not contested in the Olympic Games. They are usually held every four years, one year after a Summer Olympic Games, over the course of 11 d ...

in 1981, the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

in 1982, and the prestigious

All-England Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...

in both 1982 and 1983, as well as a host of other significant titles. In the

1983 IBF World Championships The 1983 IBF World Championships (World Badminton Championships) were held in 1983 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Medalists Medal table Events References External links First roundSecond roundThird roundQuarterfinals {{World badminton champs ...

, however, she was beaten in the semifinal by Chinese teammate Han AipingHans Moller, "how Sugiarto and King created a dream final", ''World Badminton'', June 1983, 14. and after this result was unable to regain her previous dominance. Zhang played third singles on China's

1984 Uber Cup The 1984 Thomas Cup & Uber Cup was the 13th tournament of Thomas Cup and the tenth tournament of Uber Cup, the most important badminton team competitions in the world. Indonesia won its eighth title in the Thomas Cup, after beating China in the f ...

(women's international) team which won the team world championship. Whether because Zhang, by then in her late twenties, could no longer beat her teammates Han and Li Lingwei, or because of her marriage to fellow Chinese player Chen Changjie, she disappeared from international badminton after the 1983-1984 season.

Achievements

World Championships

World Cup

World Games

Asian Games

International tournaments

The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) from 1983 to 2006. : IBF Grand Prix tournament

Invitational tournament

References

1957 births Living people Chinese female badminton players Asian Games medalists in badminton Badminton players at the 1978 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for China Badminton players at the 1982 Asian Games Medalists at the 1978 Asian Games Medalists at the 1982 Asian Games World Games medalists in badminton World Games gold medalists Competitors at the 1981 World Games Badminton players from Jiangsu Badminton players from Shanghai {{PRChina-badminton-bio-stub