Michelle Li

Michelle Li (born November 3, 1991) is a Canadian badminton player. Li is the 2014 Commonwealth Games champion and the first Canadian to win an individual gold medal in women's singles badminton at the Commonwealth Games. She has won gold in both singles and doubles at the Pan American Games and won the singles and team event titles from the Pan American Badminton Championships. As a competitor for Ontario, Li also won singles, doubles, and mixed team titles at the 2011 Canada Winter Games.

Early life and education Michelle Li was born in Hong Kong to Chi Keung Li and Agnes Kwong; together with her brother Mark, they moved to Canada in 1997. An active child, she started playing badminton at age 11 with her mom at the local community center. A friend introduced her to her current club, where she began lessons and competing locally in small tournaments. She started competing internationally when she was around 17 years old. Li graduated from Richmond Hill High School and is an undergraduate student at Rotman Commerce at the University of Toronto.

Career 2010–2012 One of Li's early notable performances came at the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax, Nova Scotia. There she won gold in the women's singles event and followed that performance with a gold in the doubles event with Alexandra Bruce. Due to this success, she was named the flag bearer for Team Ontario at the closing ceremonies for the games.

Later that year, Li was the gold medal winner in the women's doubles event alongside Bruce at the 2011 Pan American Games. Li would then go on the next day to win the women's singles competition, completing a second games double gold appearance that year, this time in Guadalajara.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Bruce and Li finished last in the round-robin portion of the women's doubles tournament, losing all three of their matches. However, the top two teams in the group were disqualified for attempting to intentionally lose matches so they would have an easier match-up in the quarterfinals. The duo was advanced to their quarterfinals, where they defeated Australia's Leanne Choo and Renuga Veeran. Bruce and Li finished in fourth place, the best Canadian finish in badminton at the Olympic Games.

2013–2014 In 2013, Li entered the finals of the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold, defeating Hong Kong top player Yip Pui Yin in the semi-finals, making her the first Pan-American athlete to ever enter into a singles final of a Grand Prix Gold event since that series began in 2007. In 2014, she also entered into the quarter-finals of the All England Open Badminton Championships Super Series Premier, beating Tai Tzu-ying in the first round, making her, in 35 years, the first Canadian player to enter at least the quarter-finals of this prestigious tournament. Later in 2014, Li won the Canada Open Grand Prix, making her the first home player to win this title ever since it became a Grand Prix event.

Li won the gold medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, defeating Kirsty Gilmour of Scotland in the final. She thus became the first Canadian woman to win a singles gold in Commonwealth badminton. She also won the singles gold medal at the 2014 Pan Am Badminton Championships in her home city, Markham, later that year.

2015–2016 At the 2015 Pan American Games, Li successfully defended her title, defeating fellow Canadian Rachel Honderich in the final.

In 2016, she qualified to represent Canada at the 2016 Summer Olympics but was defeated by P. V. Sindhu (21-19, 15-21, 17-21) and ranked 2nd in the group stage of women's singles.

Michelle also had several operations in 2016 to fix nagging injuries sustained earlier in her career. She took a year off in 2017 to heal from the operations and to focus on a comeback for 2018. After deeming herself fully fit, she entered the stage relatively quietly in 2018 until she made a landmark win against the 3rd seed Ratchanok Intanon in round 16 of the All England Open. She had not defeated Intanon previously. Michelle's progress was clear as she moved quickly around the court, playing much lighter on her feet than in previous years.

2017–2021

During the 2018 Thomas Uber Cup, Li again played well. She defeated India's Saina Nehwal, who she had not previously beaten, by 21–15, 16–21, and 16–21. Li spearheaded Canada to their first-ever Uber Cup quarterfinal, and she defeated Sung Ji-hyun (21–14, 21–15). Canada eventually lost 3–1 to South Korea. Li also won her first Macau Open title by defeating the Olympic gold medalist, Li Xuerui (21-15, 21-18) in the quarterfinals in the same year.

In the 2019 Japan Open, Li played and defeated the No. 1 seed, Tai Tzu-ying (21–15, 15–21, 22–20), to reach the semis. She also reached another semi-finals in the 2019 Korea Open after defeating the No. 4 seed, Nozomi Okuhara (21-23, 21-16, 21-19). In the same year, she successfully defended her title again at the 2019 Pan American Games.

She qualified to represent Canada at the 2020 Summer Olympics but was defeated by Nozomi Okuhara (9–21, 7–21) in the round of 16.

2022 In 2022, Li won a silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games after defeating Kirsty Gilmour of Scotland in the semi-finals and losing to P. V. Sindhu in the final. In the same year, Li also made a breakthrough in the 2022 BWF World Championships by defeating the eighth seed, Ratchanok Intanon (25-23, 16-21, 21-13), again in the round of 16. Though she eventually lost to the Olympic gold medalist and Chinese player Chen Yufei (18-21, 17-21), it marked her first time getting into the quarterfinals of the BWF World Championships since 2011.

2023–2024 In the 2023 BWF World Championships, Li retired from the competition owing to aggravating knee injury. This resulted in her absence from the remaining competitions of the BWF circuit and missing the 2023 Pan American Games in the same year. She made her comeback by entering the semi-finals in the 2024 German Open after beating the fourth seed, Pornpawee Chochuwong (21-19, 21-18).

She qualified to represent Canada at the 2024 Summer Olympics but was defeated by Akane Yamaguchi (24-22, 17-21, 12-21) and ranked 2nd in the group stage of women's singles.

2025-2026 In 2025, she entered the semi-finals in four different tournaments, especially the 2025 Hong Kong Open, after defeating Beiwen Zhang (16-21, 22-20, 21-17) and the 2025 Canada Open, after defeating Nozomi Okuhara (21-7, 19-21, 21-19).

In 2026, Li reached the quarterfinals of the BWF World Championships again in 2026 BWF World Championships. She defeated the 20-year-old eighth seed, Tomoka Miyazaki (17-21, 21-16, 21-18), in the round of 16 but lost to the No.2 seed, Akane Yamaguchi (17-21, 10-21). Achievements

Commonwealth Games Women's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 2014 Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Scotland Kirsty Gilmour 21–14, 21–7 Gold Gold 2022 National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, England P. V. Sindhu 15–21, 13–21 Silver Silver

Pan American Games Women's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 2011 Multipurpose Gymnasium, Guadalajara, Mexico Joycelyn Ko 21–12, 21–13 Gold Gold 2015 Atos Markham Pan Am Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Rachel Honderich 21–15, 21–9 Gold Gold 2019 Polideportivo 3, Lima, Peru Rachel Honderich 21–11, 21–19 Gold Gold

Women's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2011 Multipurpose Gymnasium,Guadalajara, Mexico Alex Bruce Iris Wang Rena Wang 21–15, 21–15 Gold Gold 2015 Atos Markham Pan Am Centre,Toronto, Ontario, Canada Rachel Honderich Eva Lee Paula Lynn Obañana 11–21, 8–21 Bronze Bronze

Pan Am Championships Women's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 2010 Clube Curitibano, Curitiba, Brazil Cee Nantana Ketpura 21–17, 17–21, 19–21 Silver Silver 2013 Palacio de los Deportes Virgilio Travieso Soto, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Jamie Subandhi 21–8, 21–6 Gold Gold 2014 Markham Pan Am Centre, Markham, Canada Rachel Honderich 21–13, 21–16 Gold Gold 2018 Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium, Guatemala City, Guatemala Rachel Honderich 21–15, 21–16 Gold Gold 2019 Gimnasio Olímpico, Aguascalientes, Mexico Brittney Tam 21–15, 24–22 Gold Gold 2022 Palacio de los Deportes Carlos "El Famoso" Hernández, San Salvador, El Salvador Beiwen Zhang 21–18, 16–21, 25–23 Gold Gold 2023 G.C. Foster College of Physical Education and Sport, Kingston, Jamaica Beiwen Zhang 21–19, 21–9 Gold Gold 2024 Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium, Guatemala City, Guatemala Beiwen Zhang 18–21, 21–18, 17–21 Silver Silver 2025 Videna Poli 2, Lima, Peru Juliana Viana Vieira 21–18, 21–23, 19–21 Bronze Bronze 2026 High Performance Center VIDENA, Lima, Peru Wen Yu Zhang 21–16, 22–20 Gold Gold

Women's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2010 Clube Curitibano, Curitiba, Brazil Alex Bruce Grace Gao Joycelyn Ko 21–16, 21–23, 12–21 Silver Silver 2013 Palacio de los Deportes Virgilio Travieso Soto, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Grace Gao Eva Lee Paula Lynn Obañana 21–16, 11–21, 6–21 Bronze Bronze

Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2008 Club de Regatas, Lima, Peru Adrian Liu Toby Ng Valerie Loker 14–21, 15–21 Bronze Bronze

Commonwealth Youth Games Girls' doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2008 Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Pune, India Alexandra Bruce P. C. Thulasi N. Sikki Reddy 18–21, 8–21 Silver Silver

BWF World Tour (3 titles, 1 runner-up) The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, 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 BWF World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.

Women's singles Year Tournament Level Opponent Score Result 2018 Macau Open Super 300 Han Yue 23–25, 21–17, 21–15 Winner 2019 Chinese Taipei Open Super 300 Sung Ji-hyun 11–21, 9–21 Runner-up 2019 Macau Open Super 300 Han Yue 21–18, 21–8 Winner 2022 Canada Open Super 100 Sung Shuo-yun 21–16, 21–15 Winner

BWF Grand Prix (3 titles, 3 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.

Women's singles Year Tournament Opponent Score Result 2013 Macau Open P. V. Sindhu 15–21, 12–21 Runner-up 2014 Canada Open Pai Yu-po 21–16, 23–21 Winner 2015 Canada Open Kaori Imabeppu 21–17, 25–23 Winner 2016 Canada Open Beiwen Zhang Walkover Winner 2017 U.S. Open Aya Ohori 11–21, 19–21 Runner-up 2017 Dutch Open Beiwen Zhang 16–21, 14–21 Runner-up BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series (23 titles, 10 runners-up) Women's singles Year Tournament Opponent Score Result 2010 Peru International Manami Ebuchi 18–21, 17–21 Runner-up 2010 Canadian International Hitomi Oka 21–15, 12–21, 21–23 Runner-up 2011 Dutch International Susan Egelstaff 18–21, 21–13, 15–21 Runner-up 2011 Guatemala International Jeanine Cicognini 21–15, 21–13 Winner 2011 Brazil International Kana Ito 21–15, 21–15 Winner 2011 Puerto Rico International Anne Hald Jensen 21–13, 29–27 Winner 2011 Canadian International Lianne Tan 21–14, 21–11 Winner 2012 Finnish Open Yao Jie 20–22, 19–21 Runner-up 2012 Peru International Ai Goto 21–23, 21–14, 21–15 Winner 2012 Tahiti International Nicole Grether 21–8, 21–13 Winner 2013 Maldives International Hana Ramadhini 21–8, 21–13 Winner 2013 Canadian International Christin Tsai 21–14, 21–19 Winner 2013 Brazil International Lohaynny Vicente 16–21, 21-15, 21-8 Winner 2014 Peru International Beiwen Zhang 25–27, 19–21 Runner-up 2014 Belgian International Karin Schnaase 11–6, 11–2, 11–6 Winner 2014 Czech International Marija Ulitina 21–14, 21–17 Winner 2017 Peru International Disha Gupta 21–10, 21–10 Winner 2022 Canadian International Natsuki Nidaira 21–11, 21–17 Winner 2024 Canadian International Juliana Viana Vieira 18–21, 21–14, 17–21 Runner-up 2025 Canadian International Wen Yu Zhang 21–19, 21–23, 21–12 Winner

Women's doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2011 Banuinvest International Alex Bruce Sonia Olariu Florentina Petre 21–15, 21–14 Winner 2011 Peru International Alex Bruce Iris Wang Rena Wang 11–21, 21–15, 21–8 Winner 2011 Brazil International Alex Bruce Eva Lee Paula Lynn Obañana 14–21, 17–21 Runner-up 2011 Puerto Rico International Alex Bruce Grace Gao Joycelyn Ko 24–22, 15–21, 21–11 Winner 2011 Canadian International Alex Bruce Nicole Grether Charmaine Reid 21–10, 13–21, 21–16 Winner 2012 Finnish Open Alex Bruce Chow Mei Kuan Lee Meng Yean 21–19, 12–21, 21–16 Winner 2012 Peru International Alex Bruce Nicole Grether Charmaine Reid 21–18, 21–18 Winner 2012 Tahiti International Alex Bruce Eva Lee Paula Lynn Obañana 13–21, 12–21 Runner-up 2013 Peru International Grace Gao Joycelyn Ko Christin Tsai 21–15, 21–18 Winner 2014 Czech International Rachel Honderich Irina Khlebko Elena Komendrovskaja 21–12, 21–17 Winner

Mixed doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2013 Brazil International Yang Chih-hsun Phillip Chew Jamie Subandhi 13–21, 19–21 Runner-up 2013 USA International Toby Ng Halim Haryanto Jing Yu Hong 21–16, 21–15 Winner 2014 Peru International Derrick Ng Christian Yahya Christianto Eva Lee 16–21, 18–21 Runner-up BWF International Challenge tournament BWF International Series tournament

Performance timeline

Individual competitions Senior level

Record against selected opponents Record against Year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi-finalists, and Olympic quarter-finalists. Accurate as of 30 December 2025.

Players Matches Results Difference Won Lost Petya Nedelcheva 1 1 0 +1 Chen Yufei 13 1 12 –11 Han Yue 6 3 3 0 He Bingjiao 9 0 9 –9 Li Xuerui 3 1 2 –1 Wang Shixian 1 0 1 –1 Wang Xin 1 0 1 –1 Wang Yihan 6 0 6 –6 Wang Zhiyi 5 1 4 –3 Zhang Yiman 2 1 1 0 Cheng Shao-chieh 1 0 1 –1 Tai Tzu-ying 11 2 9 –7 Tine Baun 2 0 2 –2 Tracey Hallam 1 1 0 +1 Pi Hongyan 1 0 1 –1 Juliane Schenk 3 0 3 –3

Players Matches Results Difference Won Lost Yip Pui Yin 5 3 2 +1 Saina Nehwal 3 1 2 –1 P. V. Sindhu 15 5 10 –5 Lindaweni Fanetri 2 0 2 –2 Gregoria Mariska Tunjung 5 1 4 –3 Putri Kusuma Wardani 1 0 1 –1 Minatsu Mitani 4 1 3 –2 Aya Ohori 4 1 3 –2 Nozomi Okuhara 14 5 9 –4 Akane Yamaguchi 11 0 11 –11 An Se-young 8 0 8 –8 Bae Yeon-ju 3 0 3 –3 Sung Ji-hyun 6 3 3 0 Carolina Marín 7 2 5 –3 Porntip Buranaprasertsuk 2 1 1 0 Ratchanok Intanon 11 3 8 –5