Lee Hyo-jung

Lee Hyo-jung (; ; born 13 January 1981) is a South Korean former badminton player.

She won the gold medal in badminton mixed doubles at the 2008 Summer Olympics with her partner, Lee Yong-dae. Lee Hyo-jung and Lee Yong-dae were unseeded, and in the finals they beat the top seeds and 2005 and 2007 world champions Liliyana Natsir and Nova Widianto of Indonesia, 21-11, 21-17.

Lee Hyo-jung also won the silver medal in badminton women's doubles at the aforementioned Olympics with Lee Kyung-won; they were seeded fourth and lost to the second-seeded Chinese pair, Du Jing and Yu Yang.

Lee became the first woman in Korean history to win gold medals at both the Olympics and the Asian Games. In the 2010 Asian Games, she partnered with Shin Baek-cheol instead of her usual partner, Lee Yong-dae. After winning the medal, she announced her retirement despite many pleas from her coaches and fans at home to continue playing until the London Olympics in 2012.

Career In 1998, Lee who attended the Haksan Girls' High School won the girls' singles, doubles, and mixed doubles events at the German Junior tournament. She was competed at the World and Asian Junior Championships. At the World Junior, she partnered with Jun Woul-sik in the girls' doubles and Choi Min-ho in the mixed doubles, captured the bronze and silver medals respectively. She and Jun also won the silver medal at the Asian Junior. Lee junior competed in some international senior (level 4) tournament, and won double titles at the Korea and Sri Lanka International, also women's doubles title at the Hungarian, Australian and Norwegian International tournaments.

In 2000, Lee won the Asian Championships in the women's doubles event with her partner Yim Kyung-jin. At the age of 19, Lee competed at the Sydney Olympics in the women's doubles with Yim and in the mixed doubles with Lee Dong-soo. She and Yim defeated in the second round, while with Lee Dong-soo defeated in the first round.

In 2002, Lee finished as the runners-up at the Chinese Taipei and Singapore Open in the women's doubles event with Hwang Yu-mi. In 2003, she and Hwang also the runner-up at the Thailand and Chinese Taipei Open. In the mixed doubles event, Lee who was teamed-up with Kim Yong-hyun achieved their best result by winning the bronze medal at the Asian Championships. In 2004, Lee competed for Korea at the Summer Olympics in the women's and mixed doubles with partner Hwang Yu-mi and Kim Yong-hyun respectively. Lee and Hwang had a bye in the first round and defeated Cheng Wen-Hsing and Chien Yu Chin of Chinese Taipei in the second. In the quarter-finals, Lee and Hwang lost to Zhao Tingting and Wei Yili of China 8–15, 15–6, 15–13. In the mixed doubles event, Lee and Kim were seeded three, but the pairs defeat by the Danish pair in the second round in the rubber game.

In 2008, Lee won her first All England Open Championship title in women's doubles with partner Lee Kyung-won, beating Yang Wei and Zhang Jiewen in the semifinals and Du Jing and Yu Yang in the final. In August, she and Lee Yong-dae won mixed doubles gold medals in Beijing Olympics, beating Liliyana Natsir and Nova Widianto of Indonesia and also with Lee Kyung-won grabbed the silver medal in the women's doubles event. In 2009, Lee and Lee Yong-dae became world number one. They won three titles: Korea Open Super Series, Asian Badminton Championship, and China Open Super Series. They also played for Korea in Sudirman Cup in May. In the final, Korea lost to China 0–3. Lee and Lee were defeated by the Chinese pair, Zheng Bo and Yu Yang.

In 2010, Lee competed in the 2010 Uber Cup as a member of the South Korean women's national team. There she led her team to its first Uber Cup trophy, winning all 4 doubles matches she competed in through the tourney. In the finals, she and her partner Kim Min-jung won against WR #1 Ma Jin and Wang Xiaoli, beating them 18–21, 21–12, 21–15. Although Lee and Kim were not regular partners and Lee Hyo-Jung stopped playing WD regularly in international games, Lee played exceptionally well, proving why she was the most successful player in the 2008 Olympics, winning both gold and silver medals. In June, Lee continued on playing women's doubles with Kim Min-jung, winning the Indonesia Open and the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold, and finishing as a runner-up in the Singapore Open. While waiting for Lee Yong-dae to recover from his injury, she played mixed doubles with Shin Baek-cheol.

In August, Lee partnered again with Lee Yong-dae in the Kumpoo Macau Open Badminton Championships, Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold, and World Championship, but their best finish was reaching the quarterfinals in the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix. They were hit with Lee Hyo Jung's back injury and Lee Yong-dae getting used to playing again after rehab and possibly not fully recovering from the previous injury. Due to these reasons, the head coach of the Korea Badminton Team was quoted as saying that Lee Hyo-jung and Lee Yong-dae had not had sufficient time to practice together. Lee Yong-dae decided to stop playing mixed doubles altogether, possibly due to the strain on his injured elbow from playing both men's and mixed doubles. In November, Lee Hyo-jung entered Asian Games in three games total: women's, mixed, and team event. In the women's doubles and team event, she won bronze medals. However, in mixed doubles, she partnered with Shin Baek-cheol, with whom she had previously played only two tournaments, but they still managed to win against two Chinese pairs (Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei, He Han Bin and Ma Jin) at their home court, becoming the first woman in Korean history to win both Olympic and Asian Game gold medals.

Achievements

Olympic Games Women's doubles

Mixed doubles

BWF World Championships Women's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2005 Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, United States Lee Kyung-won Yang Wei Zhang Jiewen 4–15, 3–15 Bronze Bronze

Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2009 Gachibowli Indoor Stadium, Hyderabad, India Lee Yong-dae Thomas Laybourn Kamilla Rytter Juhl 21–18, 9–21, 18–21 Bronze Bronze

Asian Games Women's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2002 Gangseo Gymnasium, Busan, South Korea Hwang Yu-mi Gao Ling Huang Sui 2–11, 9–11 Bronze Bronze 2006 Aspire Hall 3, Doha, Qatar Lee Kyung-won Gao Ling Huang Sui 16–21, 12–21 Bronze Bronze 2010 Tianhe Gymnasium, Guangzhou, China Kim Min-jung Tian Qing Zhao Yunlei 9–21, 12–21 Bronze Bronze

Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2010 Tianhe Gymnasium, Guangzhou, China Shin Baek-cheol Zhang Nan Zhao Yunlei 21–19, 21–14 Gold Gold

Asian Championships Women's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2000 Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia Yim Kyung-jin Etty Tantri Minarti Timur 15–8, 15–13 Gold Gold 2003 Tennis Indoor Gelora Bung Karno, Jakarta, Indonesia Hwang Yu-mi Ra Kyung-min Lee Kyung-won 9–15, 7–15 Silver Silver 2004 Kuala Lumpur Badminton Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Lee Kyung-won Du Jing Yu Yang 6–15, 15–11, 15–7 Gold Gold 2005 Gachibowli Indoor Stadium, Hyderabad, India Lee Kyung-won Kumiko Ogura Reiko Shiota 15–13, 8–15, 15–5 Gold Gold 2008 Bandaraya Stadium, Johor Bahru, Malaysia Lee Kyung-won Chien Yu-chin Cheng Wen-hsing 18–21, 5–21 Bronze Bronze 2009 Suwon Indoor Stadium, Suwon, South Korea Lee Kyung-won Ma Jin Wang Xiaoli 11–21, 18–21 Silver Silver

Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2003 Tennis Indoor Gelora Bung Karno, Jakarta, Indonesia Kim Yong-hyun Anggun Nugroho Eny Widiowati 13–15, 8–15 Bronze Bronze 2005 Gachibowli Indoor Stadium, Hyderabad, India Lee Jae-jin Sudket Prapakamol Saralee Thungthongkam 11–15, 17–14, 10–15 Silver Silver 2009 Suwon Indoor Stadium, Suwon, South Korea Lee Yong-dae Yoo Yeon-seong Kim Min-jung 21–12, 21–15 Gold Gold

World Junior Championships Girls' doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1998 Sports and Aquatic Centre, Melbourne, Australia Jun Woul-sik Xie Xingfang Zhang Jiewen 16–17, 1–15 Bronze Bronze

Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1998 Sports and Aquatic Centre, Melbourne, Australia Choi Min-ho Chan Chong Ming Joanne Quay 6–15, 10–15 Silver Silver

Asian Junior Championships Girls' doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1998 Kuala Lumpur Badminton Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Jun Woul-sik Gong Ruina Huang Sui 13–15, 8–15 Silver Silver

BWF Superseries (9 titles, 10 runners-up) The BWF Superseries, launched on 14 December 2006 and implemented in 2007, is a series of elite badminton tournaments, sanctioned by Badminton World Federation (BWF). BWF Superseries has two level such as Superseries and Superseries Premier. A season of Superseries features twelve tournaments around the world, which introduced since 2011, with successful players invited to the Superseries Finals held at the year end.

Women's doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2007 Swiss Open Lee Kyung-won Yang Wei Zhao Tingting 15–21, 10–21 Runner-up 2007 Denmark Open Lee Kyung-won Yang Wei Zhang Jiewen 21–12, 19–21, 19–21 Runner-up 2008 All England Open Lee Kyung-won Du Jing Yu Yang 12–21, 21–18, 21–14 Winner 2009 Malaysia Open Lee Kyung-won Yang Wei Zhang Jiewen 21–15, 21–12 Winner 2009 Korea Open Lee Kyung-won Cheng Wen-hsing Chien Yu-chin 19–21, 8–21 Runner-up 2009 Swiss Open Lee Kyung-won Du Jing Yu Yang 11–21, 12–21 Runner-up 2010 Singapore Open Kim Min-jung Shinta Mulia Sari Yao Lei 17–21, 20–22 Runner-up 2010 Indonesia Open Kim Min-jung Cheng Wen-hsing Chien Yu-chin 21–12, 12–21, 21–11 Winner

Mixed doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2007 Swiss Open Lee Yong-dae Muhammad Rijal Greysia Polii 14–21, 21–16, 21–18 Winner 2008 Malaysia Open Lee Yong-dae He Hanbin Yu Yang 14–21, 15–21 Runner-up 2008 Korea Open Lee Yong-dae Flandy Limpele Vita Marissa 15–21, 21–14, 21–18 Winner 2008 China Open Lee Yong-dae Xu Chen Zhao Yunlei 21–16, 21–15 Winner 2008 Hong Kong Open Lee Yong-dae Xie Zhongbo Zhang Yawen 14–21, 16–21 Runner-up 2009 Malaysia Open Lee Yong-dae Nova Widianto Liliyana Natsir 14–21, 19–21 Runner-up 2009 Korea Open Lee Yong-dae Songphon Anugritayawon Kunchala Voravichitchaikul 21–8, 21–7 Winner 2009 Swiss Open Lee Yong-dae Zheng Bo Ma Jin 16–21, 15–21 Runner-up 2009 Indonesia Open Lee Yong-dae Zheng Bo Ma Jin 17–21, 21–8, 16–21 Runner-up 2009 China Open Lee Yong-dae Zheng Bo Ma Jin 21–18, 15–21, 21–15 Winner 2010 Swiss Open Lee Yong-dae Shin Baek-cheol Yoo Hyun-young 21–14, 21–18 Winner BWF Superseries Finals tournament BWF Superseries Premier tournament BWF Superseries tournament

BWF Grand Prix (13 titles, 16 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. The World Badminton Grand Prix was sanctioned by the International Badminton Federation from 1983 to 2006.

Women's doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2002 Chinese Taipei Open Hwang Yu-mi Sathinee Chankrachangwong Saralee Thungthongkam 11–4, 12–13, 8–11 Runner-up 2002 Singapore Open Hwang Yu-mi Huang Nanyan Yang Wei 1–11, 8–11 Runner-up 2003 Thailand Open Yim Kyung-jin Wei Yili Zhao Tingting 9–11, 11–5, 6–11 Runner-up 2003 Dutch Open Hwang Yu-mi Lee Kyung-won Ra Kyung-min 4–15, 9–15 Runner-up 2003 Chinese Taipei Open Hwang Yu-mi Lee Kyung-won Ra Kyung-min 9–15, 8–15 Runner-up 2005 Korea Open Lee Kyung-won Gail Emms Donna Kellogg Walkover Winner 2005 Swiss Open Lee Kyung-won Cheng Wen-hsing Chien Yu-chin 15–8, 15–12 Winner 2005 Thailand Open Lee Kyung-won Zhang Dan Zhang Yawen 9–15, 15–11, 15–13 Winner 2005 Indonesia Open Lee Kyung-won Chin Eei Hui Wong Pei Tty 15–4, 15–5 Winner 2006 Chinese Taipei Open Lee Kyung-won Gao Ling Huang Sui 21–18, 9–21, 21–17 Winner 2006 Macau Open Lee Kyung-won Gao Ling Huang Sui 21–17, 14–21, 14–21 Runner-up 2006 Thailand Open Lee Kyung-won Sathinee Chankrachangwong Saralee Thungthongkam 21–18, 21–9 Winner 2007 Macau Open Lee Kyung-won Gao Ling Huang Sui 15–21, 7–21 Runner-up 2008 German Open Lee Kyung-won Miyuki Maeda Satoko Suetsuna 21–17, 21–16 Winner 2010 Chinese Taipei Open Kim Min-jung Lee Kyung-won Yoo Hyun-young 21–14, 22–20 Winner

Mixed doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2003 Korea Open Kim Yong-hyun Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 5–11, 4–11 Runner-up 2003 Swiss Open Kim Yong-hyun Jens Eriksen Mette Schjoldager 7–11, 11–9, 5–11 Runner-up 2003 Dutch Open Kim Yong-hyun Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 4–15, 2–15 Runner-up 2003 Denmark Open Kim Yong-hyun Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 16–17, 10–15 Runner-up 2004 Korea Open Kim Yong-hyun Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 5–15, 11–15 Runner-up 2004 All England Open Kim Yong-hyun Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 8–15, 15–17 Runner-up 2004 Malaysia Open Kim Yong-hyun Zhang Jun Gao Ling 2–15, 11–15 Runner-up 2005 Korea Open Lee Jae-jin Jens Eriksen Mette Schjoldager 17–14, 15–9 Winner 2005 Thailand Open Lee Jae-jin Thomas Laybourn Kamilla Rytter Juhl 15–12, 15–12 Winner 2005 Malaysia Open Lee Jae-jin Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting 15–12, 15–11 Winner 2005 German Open Lee Jae-jin Nathan Robertson Gail Emms 15–12, 17–14 Winner 2005 China Open Lee Jae-jin Nathan Robertson Gail Emms 10–15, 10–15 Runner-up 2006 Chinese Taipei Open Lee Jae-jin Nova Widianto Liliyana Natsir 21–17, 21–23, 13–21 Runner-up 2008 German Open Lee Yong-dae He Hanbin Yu Yang 9–21, 27–25, 21–18 Winner BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament BWF & IBF tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series/Satellite (8 titles, 2 runners-up) Women's doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 1997 Korea International Jun Woul-sik Choi Young-eun Lee Ji-sun 15–5, 15–9 Winner 1998 Sri Lanka International Jun Woul-sik Madhumita Bisht Sindhu Gulati 15–10, 15–5 Winner 1999 Hungarian International Yim Kyung-jin Jung Yeon-kyung Kim So-yeon 15–9, 15–13 Winner 1999 Australian International Ra Kyung-min Chung Jae-hee Yim Kyung-jin 17–16, 6–15, 15–3 Winner 1999 Norwegian International Yim Kyung-jin Jung Yeon-kyung Kim So-yeon 15–7, 15–3 Winner 2009 Korea International Lee Kyung-won Jung Kyung-eun Yoo Hyun-young 19–21, 10–21 Runner-up

Mixed doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 1997 Korea International Choi Min-ho Norhasikin Amin Pang Cheh Chang 15–8, 15–9 Winner 1998 Sri Lanka International Choi Min-ho Jung Sung-gyun Jun Woul-sik 15–13, 17–15 Winner 1999 Hungarian International Yim Bang-eun Kim Yong-hyun Yim Kyung-jin 15–5, 9–15, 3–15 Runner-up 2009 Korea International Lee Yong-dae Ko Sung-hyun Ha Jung-eun 21–14, 15–21, 21–9 Winner BWF International Challenge tournament BWF International Series tournament