Victor Lai
.jpg) Lai at the 2026 Indonesia Open | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 19 December 2004 Scarborough, Ontario, Canada[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)[3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Canada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Badminton | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Chau Hoi Wah | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Men's singles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career record | 115 wins, 58 losses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 7 (27 July 2026) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 7 (27 July 2026) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BWF profile | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Victor Lai (born 19 December 2004) is a Canadian international badminton player. At the 2025 BWF World Championships, he became the first ever player from Canada to win a medal, securing a bronze in the men's singles event and marking a major milestone for Canadian badminton.[4][5]
Personal life
[edit]Lai's family was originally from Hong Kong.[1] He is currently an undergraduate student in Kinesiology at York University.[1][6]
Career
[edit]At the 2025 BWF World Championships, Victor Lai made history by winning the bronze medal in men’s singles, becoming the first Canadian ever to medal at the event. His run included a comeback quarterfinal victory over former world champion Loh Kean Yew before narrowly losing in the semifinals to world No. 1 Shi Yuqi.
At the Super 750 India Open in 2026, Lai reached the semifinals of the men’s singles event. He defeated Chi Yu-jen in the quarterfinals in three games, 21–18, 17–21, 21–15, to advance to the final four. His run ended in the semifinals against Lin Chun-yi, who later won the tournament. The result marked Lai’s first semifinal appearance at a BWF World Tour Super 750 tournament.
In his Super 1000 All England Open Debut in March 2026, Lai once again reached the semi-finals in the historical tournament, becoming the first Canadian to reach such a milestone since women's singles player Wendy Carter achieved an All England semi-finalist in 1978.[7] In June, Lai stunned the home favourite, Jonatan Christie in the Indonesia Open to win his first world tour tournament.[8]
Achievements
[edit]BWF World Championships
[edit]Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Adidas Arena, Paris, France |  Shi Yuqi |
21–13, 20–22, 16–21 |  Bronze |
[5] |
Pan Am Championships
[edit]Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Videna Poli 2, Lima, Peru |  Joshua Nguyen |
21–9, 21–18 |  Gold |
| 2026 | High Performance Center VIDENA, Lima, Peru |  Uriel Canjura |
21–11, 21–9 | Gold |
Junior Pan American Games
[edit]Boys' singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | SND Stadium, Asunción, Paraguay |  Deivid Silva |
21–6, 23–21 | Gold |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | SND Stadium, Asunción, Paraguay | Rachel Chan |
Davi Silva Juliana Viana Vieira |
21–23, 21–14, 19–21 |  Silver |
Pan Am Junior Championships
[edit]Boys' singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Hotel Mundo Imperial, Acapulco, Mexico | Joshua Nguyen |
13–21, 13–21 | Silver |
BWF World Tour (1 title, 1 runner-up)
[edit]The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[9] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, and the BWF Tour Super 100.[10]
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Canada Open | Super 300 |  Kenta Nishimoto |
13–21, 14–21 |  Runner-up |
[11] |
| 2026 | Indonesia Open | Super 1000 |  Jonatan Christie |
21–19, 21–8 |  Winner |
[8] |
BWF International Challenge/Series (1 title, 3 runners-up)
[edit]Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Guatemala International |  Kevin Cordón |
13–21, 11–21 | Runner-up |
[12] |
| 2023 | Canadian International | Brian Yang |
15–21, 12–21 | Runner-up |
[13] |
| 2024 | Canadian International | Brian Yang |
14–21, 8–21 | Runner-up |
[14] |
| 2025 | Canadian International | Brian Yang |
21–14, 21–15 | Winner |
- BWF International Challenge tournament
- BWF International Series tournament
BWF Junior International (3 titles)
[edit]Boys' singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Guatemala Junior International | Yeison Del Cid |
25–23, 21–11 | Winner |
[15] |
| 2021 | Portuguese Junior International |  Paul Tournefier |
21–13, 21–13 | Winner |
[16] |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Guatemala Junior International | Sophia Nong |
Antonio Ortiz Ana González |
21–18, 21–15 | Winner |
[15] |
- BWF Junior International Series tournament
- BWF Junior Future Series tournament
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "华裔球手赖浩俊夺羽毛球世锦赛铜牌，成为加拿大第一人" [Chinese-Canadian badminton player Victor Lai won a bronze medal at the World Badminton Championships, becoming the first Canadian to achieve this]. Radio-Canada (in Simplified Chinese). 2 September 2025. Archived from the original on 9 September 2025. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
- ↑ "YONEX Next Gen Team". Badminton Canada. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ↑ "Player: Victor LAI". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ↑ Goh, Z. K. (29 August 2025). "BWF World Championships 2025: Loh Kean Yew exits in quarter-finals shock against Victor Lai". Olympics. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- 1 2 Sukumar, Dev (29 August 2025). "Victor Lai Makes History for Canada". Badminton World Federation.
- ↑ "Congratulations to Victor Lai - Badminton World Champion at YONEX!". York University. 9 April 2026. Archived from the original on 21 June 2026. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
- ↑ "All England: Canada, France celebrate milestones". Badminton World Federation. 7 March 2026. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
- 1 2 "Canada's Victor Lai stuns Jonatan Christie to win Indonesia Open badminton tournament". The Straits Times. 7 June 2026. Retrieved 7 June 2026.
- ↑ Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
- ↑ Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ↑ Liew, Vincent (6 July 2025). "Kenta Nishimoto Wins 2025 Canada Open". BadmintonPlanet.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2025. Retrieved 7 July 2025.
- ↑ "Champions at Guatemala International Series 2021". Badminton Pan America. 30 September 2021. Archived from the original on 2 October 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ↑ "Champions in Canada – Pan Am Circuit 2023". Badminton Pan America. 12 December 2023. Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ↑ "Winners in Canada – Pan Am Circuit 2024". Badminton Pan America. 10 December 2024. Archived from the original on 15 March 2025. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- 1 2 "Guatemala Junior International 2021 – Winners". Badminton Pan America. 22 September 2021. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ↑ "Catlyn Kruus and Ramona Üprus won the tournament in Portugal!". Triiton (in Estonian). 5 December 2021. Archived from the original on 29 August 2025. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
External links
[edit]
- Victor Lai at BWFBadminton.com
- Victor Lai at BWFWorldTourFinals.BWFBadminton.com
World rankings: Top ten badminton players as of 14 July 2026 | |
|---|---|
- 2004 births
- Living people
- Badminton players from Toronto
- Canadian sportspeople of Chinese descent
- Canadian male badminton players
- Junior Pan American Games gold medalists for Canada
- Junior Pan American Games silver medalists for Canada
- Competitors at the 2025 Summer World University Games
- Medallists at the 2019 Canada Winter Games
