Son Wan-ho

In this Korean name, the family name is Son.

Son Wan-ho (Korean: 손완호; Korean pronunciation: [so.nwan.ɦo] or [son] [wan.ɦo]; born 17 May 1988^[1]) is a South Korean badminton player. He reached a career high as world number 1 in the men's singles in May 2017.^[2] He competed at the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics. He plays primarily defensively, and began playing badminton after a teacher suggested it to him in elementary school.^{[citation needed]} He holds a bachelor's degree from Inha University in Incheon, South Korea.^[3] In 2017, he helped the Korean national team reach the final at the Sudirman Cup and won that tournament.^[4][5] He is married to compatriot women's singles player, Sung Ji-hyun.^[6]

Son at the 2010 BWF World Championships

Son Wan-ho
Son Wan-ho at the spring team event in 2015, held in Hwacheon
Personal information
Born	(1988-05-17) 17 May 1988 (age 37) Changwon, South Gyeongsang, South Korea
Residence	South Gyeongsang, South Korea
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	143 lb (65 kg)
Years active	2006–present
Handedness	Right
Men's singles
Career record	343 wins, 190 losses
Highest ranking	1 (25 May 2017)
Current ranking	281 (29 October 2024)
Medal record Men's badminton Representing  South Korea World Championships 2017 Glasgow Men's singles Sudirman Cup 2017 Gold Coast Mixed team 2015 Dongguan Mixed team Thomas Cup 2012 Wuhan Men's team 2016 Kunshan Men's team Asian Games 2014 Incheon Men's team 2010 Guangzhou Men's team Asia Mixed Team Championships 2017 Ho Chi Minh Mixed team Asia Team Championships 2016 Hyderabad Men's team 2018 Alor Setar Men's team East Asian Games 2009 Hong Kong Men's singles 2009 Hong Kong Men's team Summer Universiade 2015 Gwangju Mixed team 2015 Gwangju Men's singles Asian Junior Championships 2005 Jakarta Boys' team
BWF profile

Son Wan-ho
Hangul	손완호
Hanja	孫完虎
RR	Son Wanho
MR	Son Wanho

Achievements

BWF World Championships

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
2017	Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Scotland	Lin Dan	17–21, 14–21	Bronze

East Asian Games

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
2009	Queen Elizabeth Stadium, Hong Kong	Lin Dan	12–21, 21–23	Bronze

Summer Universiade

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
2015	Hwasun Hanium Culture Sports Center, Hwasun, South Korea	Jeon Hyeok-jin	20–22, 21–13, 17–21	Silver

BWF World Tour (3 titles)

The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,^[7] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tours are divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.^[8]

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Level	Opponent	Score	Result
2018	Hong Kong Open	Super 500	Kenta Nishimoto	14–21, 21–17, 21–13	Winner
2018	Korea Masters	Super 300	Lee Zii Jia	21–16, 21–11	Winner
2019	Malaysia Masters	Super 500	Chen Long	21–17, 21–19	Winner

BWF Superseries (2 titles, 5 runners-up)

The BWF Superseries, which was launched on 14 December 2006 and implemented in 2007,^[9] was a series of elite badminton tournaments, sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). BWF Superseries levels were Superseries and Superseries Premier. A season of Superseries consisted of twelve tournaments around the world that had been introduced since 2011.^[10] Successful players were invited to the Superseries Finals, which were held at the end of each year.

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
2012	India Open	Lee Chong Wei	21–18, 14–21, 21–19	Winner
2012	China Masters	Wang Zhengming	21–11, 14–21, 22–24	Runner-up
2014	Denmark Open	Chen Long	19–21, 22–24	Runner-up
2014	Hong Kong Open	Chen Long	21–19, 21–16	Winner
2016	Singapore Open	Sony Dwi Kuncoro	16–21, 21–13, 14–21	Runner-up
2016	Korea Open	Qiao Bin	11–21, 23–21, 7–21	Runner-up
2016	Denmark Open	Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk	13–21, 21–23	Runner-up

  BWF Superseries Finals tournament

  BWF Superseries Premier tournament

  BWF Superseries tournament

BWF Grand Prix (4 titles, 2 runners-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 Badminton World Federation (BWF) and played between 2007 and 2017.

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
2010	Chinese Taipei Open	Simon Santoso	14–21, 11–21	Runner-up
2011	Korea Grand Prix Gold	Lee Hyun-il	18–21, 16–21	Runner-up
2013	Chinese Taipei Open	Nguyễn Tiến Minh	19–21, 21–9, 21–18	Winner
2013	Macau Open	Hsueh Hsuan-yi	21–11, 21–15	Winner
2013	Vietnam Open	Tan Chun Seang	21–14, 21–9	Winner
2016	Korea Masters	Liew Daren	21–13, 21–16	Winner

  BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament

  BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series (2 runners-up)

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
2009	Osaka International	Lee Cheol-ho	21–19, 11–21, 11–21	Runner-up
2024	Thailand International	Jeon Hyeok-jin	8–21, 0–6 retired	Runner-up

  BWF International Challenge tournament

  BWF International Series tournament

Record against selected opponents

Record against Year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi-finalists, and Olympic quarter-finalists. Accurate as of 1 December 2022.^[11]

Player Matches Win Lost Diff. Bao Chunlai 2 0 2 –2 Chen Long 17 5 12 –7 Du Pengyu 3 0 3 –3 Lin Dan 14 3 11 –8 Shi Yuqi 9 4 5 –1 Tian Houwei 9 6 3 +3 Zhao Junpeng 2 2 0 +2 Chou Tien-chen 11 8 3 +5 Anders Antonsen 5 2 3 –1 Viktor Axelsen 12 5 7 –2 Peter Gade 8 1 7 –6 Jan Ø. Jørgensen 6 3 3 0 Hans-Kristian Vittinghus 9 6 3 +3 Rajiv Ouseph 4 2 2 0 Parupalli Kashyap 9 7 2 +5 Srikanth Kidambi 12 7 5 +2

Player Matches Win Lost Diff. B. Sai Praneeth 4 4 0 +4 Lakshya Sen 1 1 0 +1 Anthony Sinisuka Ginting 4 3 1 +2 Taufik Hidayat 3 0 3 –3 Sony Dwi Kuncoro 5 2 3 –1 Tommy Sugiarto 9 7 2 +5 Kento Momota 11 5 6 –1 Sho Sasaki 6 5 1 +4 Lee Chong Wei 15 3 12 –9 Liew Daren 6 4 2 +2 Wong Choong Hann 2 1 1 0 Heo Kwang-hee 3 2 1 +1 Lee Hyun-il 7 4 3 +1 Boonsak Ponsana 2 1 1 0 Kantaphon Wangcharoen 3 3 0 +3 Nguyễn Tiến Minh 7 4 3 +1