A Shifting Landscape

It doesn’t seem so long ago that Paris set the stage for the great extravaganza that was the Olympics – a stage that elevated the badminton experience.

Nearly a year has passed since then, and that can be a long time in sport. And while the TotalEnergies World Championships 2026 unfolds at the very same Olympic venue, the ground will have ever so slightly shifted.

The biggest shift perhaps is in women’s singles, which is no more the most open of all five categories that it was for a decade. Some of the most prominent faces of that golden generation – the likes of Tai Tzu Ying, three-time champion Carolina Marin, Nozomi Okuhara and He Bing Jiao – will be missing in Paris this time. (While unlikely to compete, Okuhara and Tai are still listed among the reserves at No.13 and 20 respectively).

And while some of the survivors of that generation – Pusarla V Sindhu, Ratchanok Intanon and Akane Yamaguchi, for instance, are very much competitive, the prime position is now occupied by An Se Young, with Chen Yu Fei and Wang Zhi Yi her biggest challengers. The diversity of styles and personalities that characterised women’s singles, and the closeness of the contests without a single dominant player, is currently more true of men’s doubles.

The big noticeable shift in men’s doubles, as indeed in other paired events to a lesser extent, is Malaysia’s surge. The Malaysians have been in blazing form lately, and with three strong pairs (Goh Sze Fei/Nur Izzuddin, Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik and Man Wei Chong/Tee Kai Wun), are poised for a strong showing at the Worlds.

The start of the season was exceptionally good for Korea, with new combinations on point. Seo Seung Jae’s partnership with Kim Won Ho has paid rich dividends, with the pair having won four out of six finals, and annexing all three Super 1000 titles so far this season.

Yet, despite the form of the Malaysian and Korean pairs, the margins in men’s doubles are so tight as to prevent any accurate prediction of what lies ahead.

From a French standpoint, things couldn’t be better. The French have achieved outstanding results in recent months – marking a huge shift from the past, and they stand alongside Denmark as one of two European powers favoured to medal at the World Championships.

The run-up to the World Championships could not have been more auspicious for the French, with Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue winning a HSBC BWF World Tour Super 1000 title at the Indonesia Open – the biggest individual title in the country’s history.

Alex Lanier’s Japan Open title last August was just as impressive; and he will arrive in Paris as the European champion. Then there are the Popov brothers – Christo and Toma Junior – who have continued to excel in both singles and doubles, an ability that was considered extinct at the elite level.

Chinese Taipei is another example of a relatively new powerhouse, with strength across categories. Few teams have been able to produce the number of elite contenders – particularly in men’s singles and men’s doubles – that Chinese Taipei have on the circuit. They will have a strong presence in Paris, with the likes of the ageless Chou Tien Chen, All England finalist Lee Chia Hao and Lin Chun-Yi in singles and three strong men’s doubles pairs.

Meanwhile, what do the signs portend for China?

The Chinese have emerged in the post-Olympic period without two great pairs – Zheng Si Wei/Huang Ya Qiong and Chen Qing Chen/Jia Yi Fan. Yet, there has barely been a blip in their performance as other pairs have taken charge.

The last time China won three gold medals at a single edition was a decade ago – at the World Championships 2025 in Jakarta. With strong contenders in all five categories in Paris, China remain in sight of repeating that performance.