Taiyo Imai

Taiyo Imai (今井 大湧, Imai Taiyō; born 11 August 1998) is a Japanese para badminton player.^[1][2] He competed in the men singles SU5 event of the 2020 Summer Paralympics.

Personal information
Born	(1998-08-11) 11 August 1998 (age 27) Aichi Prefecture, Japan
Height	175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	62 kg (137 lb)
Men's singles SU5 Mixed doubles SL3–SU5
Highest ranking	2 (MS, 16 August 2022) 2 (XD with Noriko Ito, 12 July 2022)
Current ranking	6 (MS) 6 (XD with Noriko Ito) (8 October 2024)
Medal record Men's para-badminton Representing  Japan World Championships 2017 Ulsan Men's singles 2022 Tokyo Men's singles 2024 Pattaya Men's singles Asian Championships 2016 Beijing Men's singles Asian Youth Para Games 2017 Dubai Men's singles 2017 Dubai Men's doubles
BWF profile

He won a bronze medal in the men's singles SU5 at the 2017 BWF Para-Badminton World Championships.^[3]

Achievements

World Championships

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
2017	Dongchun Gymnasium, Ulsan, South Korea	Cheah Liek Hou	14–21, 8–21	Bronze
2022	Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Tokyo, Japan	Dheva Anrimusthi	13–21, 12–21	Bronze
2024	Pattaya Exhibition and Convention Hall, Pattaya, Thailand	Dheva Anrimusthi	20–22, 8–21	Bronze

Asian Championships

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
2016	China Administration of Sport for Persons with Disabilities, Beijing, China	Suryo Nugroho	13–21, 7–21	Silver

Asian Youth Para Games

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
2017	Al Wasl Club, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	Dheva Anrimusthi	12–21, 21–17, 21–17	Gold

Men's doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2017	Al Wasl Club, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	Kaito Nakamura	Dheva Anrimusthi Arya Sadewa	16–21, 16–21	Bronze

BWF Para Badminton World Circuit (2 titles, 3 runners-up)

The BWF Para Badminton World Circuit – Grade 2, Level 1, 2 and 3 tournaments has been sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation from 2022.^[4][5]

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Level	Opponent	Score	Result
2022	Spanish Para Badminton International	Level 1	Méril Loquette	21–18, 21–18	Winner
2022	Dubai Para Badminton International	Level 2	Cheah Liek Hou	11–21, 19–21	Runner-up
2022	4 Nations Para Badminton International	Level 1	Cheah Liek Hou	17–21, 16–21	Runner-up

Mixed doubles

Year	Tournament	Level	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2022	Dubai Para Badminton International	Level 2	Noriko Ito	Fredy Setiawan Khalimatus Sadiyah	11–21, 21–18, 7–21	Runner-up
2022	Canada Para Badminton International	Level 1	Noriko Ito	Daisuke Fujihara Akiko Sugino	21–16, 21–10	Winner

International Tournaments (4 titles, 7 runners-up)

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
2016	Irish Para Badminton International	Cheah Liek Hou	26–24, 9–21, 14–21	Runner-up
2017	Thailand Para Badminton International	Cheah Liek Hou	13–21, 16–21	Runner-up
2017	Peru Para Badminton International	Gen Shogaki	21–9, 18–21, 21–19	Winner
2018	Brazil Para Badminton International	Bartłomiej Mróz	21–19, 10–21, 8–21	Runner-up
2018	Japan Para Badminton International	Bartłomiej Mróz	21–14, 21–11	Winner
2018	Australia Para Badminton International	Suryo Nugroho	21–14, 20–22, 10–21	Runner-up

Men's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2017[a]	Peru Para Badminton International	Gen Shogaki	Esteban Isael César Suárez	21–3, 21–3	Winner
			Ricardo Cavalli Eduardo Oliveira	21–11, 21–7
			Hironobu Kawabata Tetsuo Ura	21–12, 21–19
			Geraldo da Silva Oliveira Genivaldo Duarte	21–7, 21–0
2017	USA Para Badminton International	Tetsuo Ura	Cheah Liek Hou Hairol Fozi Saaba	14–21, 21–23	Runner-up
2018	Spanish Para Badminton International	İlker Tuzcu	Kim Gi-yeon Shin Kyung-hwan	23–25, 21–10, 21–19	Winner
2018[b]	Australia Para Badminton International	Hironobu Kawabata	Gen Shogaki Tetsuo Ura	17–21, 17–21	Runner-up
			Pu Gui-yu Yeh En-chuan	21–16, 21–9
			James Binnie Antony Forster	21–10, 21–13
			Sugil Abbas Suryo Nugroho	21–18, 21–13

Mixed doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2018	Brazil Para Badminton International	Asami Yamada	Toshiaki Suenaga Akiko Sugino	9–21, 17–21	Runner-up

Notes

1. This tournament uses a round robin system.
2. This tournament uses a round robin system.