Xia Xuanze

Xia Xuanze (born 5 January 1979) is a former badminton player from China who played singles at the world level from the late 1990s through the first few years of the 21st century. Previously he was served as the vice chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association and a singles coach for the national team of China.

Career At one time or another he experienced victory in most of badminton's biggest events. The exception came in his sole appearance at the Olympics when he was beaten in the semifinals of the 2000 Games in Sydney by Indonesia's Hendrawan. Xia settled for a bronze medal there after defeating Denmark's Peter Gade in the playoff for third place. Earlier in that season, Xia had won the prestigious All-England Championships over eighteen-year-old Taufik Hidayat. He captured men's singles at the IBF World Championships in 2003 by defeating Malaysia's Wong Choong Hann. Finally, in international team play, he was a member of the Chinese squad that ended a long drought by capturing the highly coveted Thomas Cup (men's world team competition and trophy) in 2004.

In the 2010 Thomas Cup, Xia coached Chen Jin, witnessing his country win 3–0 over Indonesia for their fourth consecutive Thomas Cup.

In 2017, Xia Xuanze together with Zhang Jun replaced Li Yongbo as head coach of the Chinese badminton team.

Xia was elected as the vice chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association in January 2019. In 2021, he was appointed as a singles coach for the national team of China.

Investigation On 31 August 2026, Xia was placed investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission, for alleged "serious violations of discipline and laws".

Player attributes Xia's game was marked by impressive speed and agility, aggressive and accurate net play, and adequate, if not overwhelming, overhead power. The power he used in his legs allowed him to "play the shot" very early. This attribute, combined with very sophisticated and consistent deceptive shots, gave some of his opponents the opportunity to win very few points at all.

Achievements

Olympic Games Men's singles

World Championships Men's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 2003 National Indoor Arena, Birmingham, United Kingdom Wong Choong Hann 15–6, 13–15, 15–6 Gold Gold

Asian Championships Men's singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result 2001 PhilSports Arena, Manila, Philippines Lin Dan 15–10, 15–9 Gold Gold 2002 Nimibutr Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand Taufik Hidayat 2–15, 11–15 Bronze Bronze

World Junior Championships Boys' singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result1996 Silkeborg-Hallerne, Silkeborg, Denmark Rudy Ignatius 16–17, 14–17 Bronze Bronze

Asian Junior Championships Boys' singles Year Venue Opponent Score Result1997 Ninoy Aquino Stadium, Manila, Philippines Taufik Hidayat 15–2, 16–17, 4–15 Bronze Bronze

Boys' doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result1997 Ninoy Aquino Stadium, Manila, Philippines Chen Hong Cai Yun Zhang Yi 6–15, 6–15 Bronze Bronze

IBF World Grand Prix (8 titles, 5 runners-up) The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) from 1983 to 2006.

Men's singles Year Tournament Opponent Score Result 1999 German Open Pullela Gopichand 15–4, 13–15, 15–4 Winner 1999 Dutch Open Ji Xinpeng 15–10, 15–13 Winner 2000 All England Open Taufik Hidayat 15–6, 15–13 Winner 2000 Swiss Open Ji Xinpeng 15–8, 15–6 Winner 2000 Malaysia Open Taufik Hidayat 10–15, 14–17 Runner-up 2000 World Grand Prix Finals Marleve Mainaky 7–4, 7–5, 2–7, 8–6 Winner 2001 China Open Wong Choong Hann 3–7, 7–3, 2–7, 7–5, 7–4 Winner 2002 Japan Open Lee Hyun-il 7–5, 5–7, 7–0, 5–7, 2–5 Runner-up 2003 Japan Open Lin Dan 15–12, 15–10 Winner 2004 Korea Open Chen Hong 15–9, 17–15 Winner 2004 Denmark Open Lin Dan 12–15, 11–15 Runner-up 2004 German Open Lin Dan 16–17, 9–15 Runner-up 2006 Swiss Open Lee Chong Wei 8–15, 0–15 Runner-up