Liu Xia (badminton) explained

Liu Xia
刘霞
Birth Place:Shanghai, China[1]
Country:China
Handedness:Right

Liu Xia (; Mandarin pronunciation: lʲə́u ɕáː) is a former badminton player from China.[2]

Liu is one of the players from China who played in the era of split between World Badminton Federation (WBF) and International Badminton Federation (IBF). The Chinese badminton team was the member of WBF due to dispute, she therefore wasn't able to participate in many of the big tournaments which were handled and sanctioned only by the IBF, but still excelled in various continental championships which included Asian Games, Asian Championships and Asian Invitational Championships. She was the gold medalist in the World Championship which rival organisation WBF conducted in 1979.

Career & Early life

In 1970, when Liu Xia was a 15 years of age, she was studying at Chengdu No. 2 Middle School in Shanghai. Being a 15-year-old, it was the first time she was exposed to badminton and thereafter joined the Shanghai team. Just after an year, she got selected to the national badminton training team. Because of her extreme talent in the sport, which included broader skills, coordination of movements, flexible pace, etc. she immediately became the main force of the Chinese women's team. In 1975, Liu travelled to Japan with the Chinese youth team and became the press attention after defeating strongest of Japanese players at that time. After winning several Asian championships, Liu ushered in the pinnacle of her career: in the first World Games badminton competition held in the United States in July 1981, she teamed up with Zhang Ailing to win the women's doubles championship.[3] Due to the organisational divide, the Chinese badminton team failed to participate in the World Championships, Olympic Games and other competitions, and she did not have a bigger stage to show her skills, but proved herself of being an elite player of that generation.

After retirement, Liu Xia returned to her hometown Shanghai and then went to Thailand as a coach in 1990. She also has her own business in Shanghai. On the one hand, she is in charge of the development department of the East Asian Sports and Cultural Center, and also opened an indoor badminton hall next to the Shanghai Stadium, which holds the "Liu Xia Cup" amateur badminton competition on annual basis.

Achievements

World Games

Women's doubles! Year! Venue! Partner! Opponent! Score! Result
1981San Jose Civic Auditorium, California, United States Zhang Ailing Nora Perry
Jane Webster
11–15, 15–4, 15–8 Gold

Asian Games

Women's singles! Year! Venue! Opponent! Score! Result
1978Bangkok, Thailand Liang Qiuxia6–11, 5–11 Silver

Asian Championships

Women's singles! Year! Venue! Opponent! Score! Result
1976Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad,
India
Liang Qiuxia6–11, 6–11 Silver
Women's doubles! Year! Venue! Partner! Opponent! Score! Result
1976Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad,
India
Zhang Ailing Regina Masli
Theresia Widiastuti
9–15, 8–15 Bronze

International tournaments

Women's doubles! Year! Venue! Partner! Opponent! Score! Result
1981Scandinavian Cup Zhang Ailing Nora Perry
Jane Webster
12–15, 9–15 Runner-up
1981English Masters Zhang Ailing Gillian Gilks
Yoshiko Yonekura
15–10, 3–15, 15–6 Winner

Invitational tournament

Women's singles! Year! Tournament! Opponent! Score! Result
1977Asian Invitational Championships Liang Qiuxia5–11, 7–11 Silver
1978Asian Invitational Championships Zhang Ailing11–2, 11–7 Gold
Women's doubles! Year! Tournament! Partner! Opponent! Score! Result
1977Asian Invitational Championships Liang Qiuxia Mikiko Takada
Atsuko Tokuda
15–7, 15–6 Gold

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 刘霞 Liu Xia. Badminton China. 8 January 2022. zh-hans.
  2. Web site: 冠军情侣刘霞陈天龙力撑 上海全球华人羽球大赛展开. https://web.archive.org/web/20210614182831/https://sports.sina.cn/sa/2005-10-31/detail-ikftssaq0747421.d.html?from=wap. 14 June 2021. Sina. zh. 31 October 2005.
  3. Web site: Results of the World Games. 25 October 2015. International World Games Association.