# Zhang Jun (badminton)

Zhang Jun (simplified Chinese: 张军; traditional Chinese: 張軍; pinyin: Zhāng Jūn; born November 26, 1977, in Suzhou, Jiangsu) is a former male badminton player from the People's Republic of China. He is now a coach with the Chinese national team following his retirement as an international player.

## Career

As a doubles specialist, the solidly built Zhang Jun won several international men's doubles titles with compatriot Zhang Wei including the Swiss (1998), China (2001), and Thailand (2005) Opens. However, the majority of his titles, and the most prestigious ones, came in mixed doubles when he teamed up with the formidable Gao Ling. These included consecutive gold medals at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games, earned by surviving a number of very close matches, particularly in 2000 when they were on the verge of elimination in the semifinals. In a similar fashion, Zhang and Gao captured the 2001 IBF World Championships by squeezing past the brilliant South Korean duo Kim Dong-moon and Ra Kyung-min 17-16 in the third game. Zhang's other titles with Gao include three victories (2001, 2003, and 2006) at the prestigious All-England Championships; the Badminton Asia Championships in 2002; the China Masters in 2005; and the China (2002, 2003), Japan (2003), Indonesia (2004), Malaysia (2004, 2006), Thailand (2005), Singapore (2005), and German (2006) Opens.
Zhang had the honor of being an Olympic torch carrier at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Games.
After retirement, Zhang Jun coached the Chinese national badminton team. He was promoted to head coach of the national badminton doubles team in 2017, before being selected as vice chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association (CBA) in 2018.
On January 28, 2019, Zhang Jun was elected as the chairman of Chinese Badminton Association.
Zhang Jun, as president of the Chinese Badminton Association, competed with Khunying Patama, his counterpart from the Badminton Association of Thailand and Anton Aditya Subowo, president of Badminton Asia, for the position of BWF deputy president but lost; Patama was elected deputy president in May 2019, during the Sudirman Cup tournament in Nanning, China.

## Personal life

Zhang Jun married synchronised swimmer Hu Ni in 2006. Their son was born in 2009. (Zhang Jun's former doubles partner Cai Yun, whom he later also coached, married Hu Ni's teammate Wang Na in 2010.)

## Achievements
### Olympic Games

Mixed doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 2000 | The Dome, Sydney, Australia | Gao Ling | Trikus Haryanto Minarti Timur | 1–15, 15–13, 15–11 | Gold |
| 2004 | Goudi Olympic Hall, Athens, Greece | Gao Ling | Nathan Robertson Gail Emms | 15–1, 12–15, 15–12 | Gold |

### World Championships

Men's doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1999 | Brøndby Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark | Zhang Wei | Ha Tae-kwon Kim Dong-moon | 6–15, 15–17 | Bronze |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 2003 | National Indoor Arena, Birmingham, England | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 7–15, 8–15 | Silver |
| 2001 | Palacio de Deportes de San Pablo, Seville, Spain | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 15–10, 12–15, 17–16 | Gold |

### Asian Games

Mixed Doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1998 | Thammasat Gymnasium 2, Bangkok, Thailand | Qin Yiyuan | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 3–15, 6–15 | Bronze |

### Asian Championships

Men's doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1998 | Bangkok, Thailand | Zhang Wei | Ha Tae-kwon Kang Kyung-jin | 15–12, 11–15, 13–15 | Silver |
| 1999 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Zhang Wei | Ha Tae-kwon Kim Dong-moon | 6–15, 4–15 | Silver |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1997 | Bangkok, Thailand | Liu Lu | Yang Ming Qian Hong | 15–12, 17–16 | Gold |
| 2002 | Bangkok, Thailand | Gao Ling | Khunakorn Sudhisodhi Saralee Thungthongkam | 11–7, 11–8 | Gold |

### IBF World Grand Prix (16 titles, 11 runners-up)

The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) since 1983.
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1998 | Swedish Open | Yang Ming | Candra Wijaya Tony Gunawan | 3–15, 6–15 | Runner-Up |
| 1998 | Swiss Open | Zhang Wei | Liu Yong Yu Jinhao | 17–15, 15–7 | Winner |
| 2000 | Thailand Open | Zhang Wei | Sigit Budiarto Halim Haryanto | 15–5, 15–10 | Winner |
| 2001 | China Open | Zhang Wei | Chen Qiqiu Liu Yong | 7–1, 4–7, 8–6 4–7, 7–5 | Winner |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 2006 | Macau Open | Gao Ling | Thomas Laybourn Kamilla Rytter Juhl | 19–21, 20–22 | Runner-up |
| 2006 | Malaysia Open | Gao Ling | Jonas Rasmussen Britta Andersen | 19–21, 21–14, 21–15 | Winner |
| 2006 | China Masters | Gao Ling | Xie Zhongbo Zhang Yawen | 16–21, 21–10, 20–22 | Runner-up |
| 2006 | All England Open | Gao Ling | Nathan Robertson Gail Emms | 12–15, 17–15, 15–1 | Winner |
| 2006 | German Open | Gao Ling | Xie Zhongbo Zhang Yawen | 15–11, 15–12 | Winner |
| 2005 | China Masters | Gao Ling | Hendri Kurniawan Saputra Li Yujia | 15–7, 15–13 | Winner |
| 2005 | Singapore Open | Gao Ling | Sudket Prapakamol Saralee Thungthongkam | 10–15, 15–7, 15–5 | Winner |
| 2004 | Indonesia Open | Gao Ling | Robert Blair Natalie Munt | 15–9, 15–9 | Winner |
| 2004 | Malaysia Open | Gao Ling | Kim Yong-hyun Lee Hyo-jung | 15–2, 15–11 | Winner |
| 2004 | Swiss Open | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 2–15, 8–15 | Runner-up |
| 2003 | China Open | Gao Ling | Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting | 15–13, 15–6 | Winner |
| 2003 | Hong Kong Open | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 7–15, 10–15 | Runner-up |
| 2003 | German Open | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 12–15, 15–11, 8–15 | Runner-up |
| 2003 | Indonesia Open | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 15–10, 11–15, 6–15 | Runner-up |
| 2003 | Japan Open | Gao Ling | Jens Eriksen Mette Schjoldager | 9–11, 11–8, 11–9 | Winner |
| 2003 | All England Open | Gao Ling | Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting | 11–6, 11–7 | Winner |
| 2002 | China Open | Gao Ling | Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting | 11–4, 11–4 | Winner |
| 2001 | All England Open | Gao Ling | Michael Søgaard Rikke Olsen | 10–15, 15–8, 15–9 | Winner |
| 2001 | Korea Open | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 8–15, 11–15 | Runner-up |
| 2000 | Thailand Open | Gao Ling | Simon Archer Joanne Goode | 15–13, 15–12 | Winner |
| 2000 | Swiss Open | Gao Ling | Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min | 8–15, 9–15 | Runner-up |
| 1999 | China Open | Gao Ling | Liu Yong Ge Fei | 8–15, 5–15 | Runner-up |
| 1999 | Denmark Open | Gao Ling | Liu Yong Ge Fei | 12–15, 14–17 | Runner-up |