# Badminton at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's singles

The men's singles badminton tournament at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place from 24 July to 2 August 2021 at the Musashino Forest Sport Plaza at Tokyo. A total of 41 players from 36 nations actually competed at the tournament.
Viktor Axelsen of Denmark won his first Olympic gold, defeating defending Olympic champion Chen Long from China. He became the first non-Asian — specifically Danish — to win Olympic badminton men's singles since Poul-Erik Høyer Larsen in 1996. Anthony Sinisuka Ginting of Indonesia won bronze by defeating four-time Olympian Kevin Cordón of Guatemala. He became the first Youth Olympic badminton medalist to win a medal at the Olympics, having also won bronze in 2014.

## Background

This was the 8th appearance of the event as a full medal event. Badminton was introduced as a demonstration sport in 1972, held again as an exhibition sport in 1988, and added to the full programme in 1992; the men's singles tournament had been held since.
The reigning champion was Chen Long of China, who also won bronze in 2012. 2016 bronze medalist Viktor Axelsen of Denmark also qualified. The top-ranked qualifier was Kento Momota of Japan who was also the reigning world champion.

## Qualification

The badminton qualification system was designed to ensure that 86 men and 86 women receive quota spots; the size of the men's singles field adjusts to hit that target quota. Following revisions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the qualifying periods were set on 29 April 2019 to 15 March 2020 and 4 January to 13 June 2021, with the ranking list of 15 June 2021 deciding qualification.
There were 38 initial quota places for the men's singles: 34 from the ranking list, 3 from Tripartite Commission invitations, and 1 host nation place. Nations with multiple players in the top 16 of the ranking list could earn 2 quota places; all others were limited to 1. Players were taken from the ranking list in order, respecting the national limits, until the places were filled. Each continent was guaranteed one spot, either through the invitational spots or by replacing the lowest-ranked player if necessary. The host nation spot was unused since Japan qualified two players through the ranking list and was reallocated to the ranking list.
Additional places beyond 38 were added where players qualified in both the men's singles and one of the doubles events. This resulted in 3 additional places added to the ranking list. One place was also given to a member of the Refugee Team, Aram Mahmoud. The total of qualified players was thus 42.

## Competition format

The tournament started with a group phase round-robin followed by a knockout stage. For the group stage, the players were divided into between 12 and 16 groups of between 3 and 4 players each. Each group played a round-robin. The top player in each group advanced to the knockout rounds. The knockout stage was a four-round single elimination tournament with a bronze medal match. If there were fewer than 16 groups in the group stage, some players received a bye in the round of 16.
Matches were played best-of-three games. Each game was played to 21, except that a player must win by 2 unless the score reaches 30–29.

## Schedule

The tournament was held over a 10-day period, with 9 competition days and 1 open day.
| P | Preliminaries | R | Round of 16 | QF | Quarter-finals | SF | Semi-finals | M | Medal matches |
| Date | 24 Jul | 24 Jul | 25 Jul | 25 Jul | 26 Jul | 26 Jul | 27 Jul | 27 Jul | 28 Jul | 28 Jul | 29 Jul | 29 Jul | 30 Jul | 30 Jul | 31 Jul | 31 Jul | 1 Aug | 1 Aug | 2 Aug | 2 Aug |
| Event | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | A | M | E | A | E | A | E |
| Men's singles | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | P | | P | | R | | | QF | | SF | | | M |

## Seeds

A total of 14 players were given seeds.

## Group stage

The group stage was played from 24 to 28 July. The winner of each group advanced to the knockout rounds.

### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Heo Kwang-hee (KOR) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 59 | +25 | 2 | Advance to quarter-finals |
| 2 | Kento Momota (JPN) (H) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 76 | 63 | +13 | 1 | |
| 3 | Timothy Lam (USA) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 46 | 84 | −38 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 18:00 | Kento Momota | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Timothy Lam | 21–12 | 21–9 |
| 26 July | 18:40 | Heo Kwang-hee | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Timothy Lam | 21–10 | 21–15 |
| 28 July | 20:00 | Kento Momota | 0–2 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Heo Kwang-hee | 15–21 | 19–21 |

### Group C

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Kevin Cordón (GUA) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 85 | 59 | +26 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Ng Ka Long (HKG) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 75 | 62 | +13 | 1 | |
| 3 | Lino Muñoz (MEX) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 45 | 84 | −39 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 24 July | 10:20 | Ng Ka Long | 2–0 Archived 29 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Lino Muñoz | 21–9 | 21–10 |
| 26 July | 14:00 | Kevin Cordón | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Lino Muñoz | 21–14 | 21–12 |
| 28 July | 18:00 | Ng Ka Long | 0–2 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Kevin Cordón | 20–22 | 13–21 |

### Group D

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Mark Caljouw (NED) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 101 | 68 | +33 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Misha Zilberman (ISR) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 82 | 91 | −9 | 1 | |
| 3 | B. Sai Praneeth (IND) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 60 | 84 | −24 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 |
| 24 July | 13:00 | B. Sai Praneeth | 0–2 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Misha Zilberman | 17–21 | 15-21 | |
| 26 July | 11:20 | Mark Caljouw | 2–1 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Misha Zilberman | 17–21 | 21–9 | 21–10 |
| 28 July | 18:00 | B. Sai Praneeth | 0–2 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Mark Caljouw | 14–21 | 14–21 | |

### Group E

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Viktor Axelsen (DEN) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 45 | +39 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Kalle Koljonen (FIN) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 64 | 72 | −8 | 1 | |
| 3 | Luka Wraber (AUT) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 53 | 84 | −31 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 24 July | 19:20 | Viktor Axelsen | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Luka Wraber | 21–12 | 21–11 |
| 26 July | 10:40 | Kalle Koljonen | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Luka Wraber | 21–13 | 21–17 |
| 28 July | 18:40 | Viktor Axelsen | 2–0 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Kalle Koljonen | 21–9 | 21–13 |

### Group F

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Wang Tzu-wei (TPE) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 102 | 72 | +30 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Nhat Nguyen (IRL) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 87 | 90 | −3 | 1 | |
| 3 | Niluka Karunaratne (SRI) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 57 | 84 | −27 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 |
| 24 July | 20:00 | Wang Tzu-wei | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Niluka Karunaratne | 21–12 | 21–15 | |
| 26 July | 20:00 | Nhat Nguyen | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Niluka Karunaratne | 21–16 | 21–14 | |
| 28 July | 18:40 | Wang Tzu-wei | 2–1 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Nhat Nguyen | 21–12 | 18–21 | 21–12 |

### Group G

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Jonatan Christie (INA) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 98 | 81 | +17 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Loh Kean Yew (SGP) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 101 | 83 | +18 | 1 | |
| 3 | Aram Mahmoud (EOR) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 49 | 84 | −35 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 |
| 24 July | 11:00 | Jonatan Christie | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Aram Mahmoud | 21–8 | 21–14 | |
| 26 July | 20:00 | Loh Kean Yew | 2–0 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Aram Mahmoud | 21–15 | 21–12 | |
| 28 July | 19:20 | Jonatan Christie | 2–1 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Loh Kean Yew | 22–20 | 13–21 | 21–18 |

### Group H

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Shi Yuqi (CHN) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 42 | 17 | +25 | 1 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Matthew Abela (MLT) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | 17 | 42 | −25 | 0 | |
| 3 | Sören Opti (SUR) (N) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 |
| 25 July | 12:40 | Shi Yuqi | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Matthew Abela | 21–8 | 21–9 | |
| 26 July | 19:20 | Sören Opti | N/P Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Matthew Abela | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| 28 July | 19:20 | Shi Yuqi | N/P Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Sören Opti | Cancelled | Cancelled | Cancelled |

### Group I

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Kanta Tsuneyama (JPN) (H) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 36 | +48 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Ygor Coelho (BRA) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 64 | 63 | +1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Julien Paul (MRI) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 35 | 84 | −49 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 10:40 | Kanta Tsuneyama | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Julien Paul | 21–8 | 21–6 |
| 26 July | 14:00 | Ygor Coelho | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Julien Paul | 21–5 | 21–16 |
| 28 July | 19:20 | Kanta Tsuneyama | 2–0 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Ygor Coelho | 21–14 | 21–8 |

### Group J

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (INA) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 43 | +41 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Sergey Sirant (ROC) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 64 | 78 | −14 | 1 | |
| 3 | Gergely Krausz (HUN) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 57 | 84 | −27 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 13:20 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Gergely Krausz | 21–13 | 21–8 |
| 27 July | 10:00 | Sergey Sirant | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Gergely Krausz | 21–18 | 21–18 |
| 28 July | 18:00 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting | 2–0 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Sergey Sirant | 21–12 | 21–10 |

### Group K

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Toby Penty (GBR) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 60 | +24 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Kantaphon Wangcharoen (THA) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 73 | 70 | +3 | 1 | |
| 3 | Kai Schäfer (GER) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 57 | 84 | −27 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 20:00 | Kantaphon Wangcharoen | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Kai Schäfer | 21–13 | 21–15 |
| 27 July | 10:40 | Toby Penty | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Kai Schäfer | 21–18 | 21–11 |
| 28 July | 20:00 | Kantaphon Wangcharoen | 0–2 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Toby Penty | 19–21 | 12–21 |

### Group L

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Anders Antonsen (DEN) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 57 | +27 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Ade Resky Dwicahyo (AZE) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 73 | 74 | −1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Nguyễn Tiến Minh (VIE) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 58 | 84 | −26 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 20:00 | Anders Antonsen | 2–0 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Nguyễn Tiến Minh | 21–13 | 21–13 |
| 27 July | 20:00 | Ade Resky Dwicahyo | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Nguyễn Tiến Minh | 21–14 | 21–18 |
| 28 July | 20:00 | Anders Antonsen | 2–0 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Ade Resky Dwicahyo | 21–16 | 21–15 |

### Group M

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Lee Zii Jia (MAS) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 38 | +46 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Brice Leverdez (FRA) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 64 | 60 | +4 | 1 | |
| 3 | Artem Pochtarov (UKR) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 34 | 84 | −50 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 18:40 | Lee Zii Jia | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Artem Pochtarov | 21–5 | 21–11 |
| 27 July | 13:20 | Brice Leverdez | 2–0 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Artem Pochtarov | 21–10 | 21–8 |
| 28 July | 20:40 | Lee Zii Jia | 2–0 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Brice Leverdez | 21–17 | 21–5 |

### Group N

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 84 | 40 | +44 | 2 | Advance to elimination round |
| 2 | Pablo Abián (ESP) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 63 | 60 | +3 | 1 | |
| 3 | Raul Must (EST) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 37 | 84 | −47 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 |
| 25 July | 14:00 | Chen Long | 2–0 Archived 26 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Raul Must | 21–10 | 21–9 |
| 27 July | 10:00 | Pablo Abián | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Raul Must | 21–7 | 21–11 |
| 28 July | 20:40 | Chen Long | 2–0 Archived 27 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Pablo Abián | 21–11 | 21–10 |

### Group P

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Chou Tien-chen (TPE) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 101 | 82 | +19 | 2 | Advance to quarter-finals |
| 2 | Felix Burestedt (SWE) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 65 | 71 | −6 | 1 | |
| 3 | Brian Yang (CAN) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 88 | 101 | −13 | 0 | |
| Date | Time | Player 1 | Score | Player 2 | Set 1 | Set 2 | Set 3 |
| 25 July | 10:00 | Chou Tien-chen | 2–0 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Felix Burestedt | 21–12 | 21–11 | |
| 27 July | 19:20 | Brian Yang | 0–2 Archived 25 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Felix Burestedt | 12–21 | 17–21 | |
| 28 July | 18:40 | Chou Tien-chen | 2–1 Archived 28 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine | Brian Yang | 21–18 | 16–21 | 22–20 |

## Finals

The knockout stage was played from 29 July to 2 August. One round was held per day, with a day off on 30 July. This stage was a single-elimination tournament with a bronze medal match.
| Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | | Gold medal match | Gold medal match | Gold medal match | Gold medal match | Gold medal match |
| | | | | | A1 | Heo Kwang-hee (KOR) | 13 | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | C1 | Kevin Cordón (GUA) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| C1 | Kevin Cordón (GUA) | 21 | 3 | 21 | C1 | Kevin Cordón (GUA) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| D1 | Mark Caljouw (NED) | 17 | 21 | 19 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| D1 | Mark Caljouw (NED) | 17 | 21 | 19 | | | | | | C1 | Kevin Cordón (GUA) | 18 | 11 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | E1 | Viktor Axelsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | |
| E1 | Viktor Axelsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | E1 | Viktor Axelsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | |
| F1 | Wang Tzu-wei (TPE) | 16 | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| F1 | Wang Tzu-wei (TPE) | 16 | 14 | | E1 | Viktor Axelsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | H1 | Shi Yuqi (CHN) | 13 | 13 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| G1 | Jonatan Christie (INA) | 11 | 9 | | H1 | Shi Yuqi (CHN) | 13 | 13 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| H1 | Shi Yuqi (CHN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| H1 | Shi Yuqi (CHN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | | | E1 | Viktor Axelsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 15 | 12 | |
| I1 | Kanta Tsuneyama (JPN) | 18 | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 15 | 12 |
| J1 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (INA) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | |
| J1 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (INA) | 21 | 21 | | J1 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (INA) | 21 | 15 | 21 | | | | |
| | | | | | L1 | Anders Antonsen (DEN) | 18 | 21 | 18 | | | | |
| K1 | Toby Penty (GBR) | 10 | 15 | | L1 | Anders Antonsen (DEN) | 18 | 21 | 18 | | | | |
| L1 | Anders Antonsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | | |
| L1 | Anders Antonsen (DEN) | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | J1 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (INA) | 16 | 11 |
| | | | | | | | | | | N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 21 | 21 |
| M1 | Lee Zii Jia (MAS) | 21 | 19 | 5 | | | | | | N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 21 | 21 | | Bronze medal match | Bronze medal match | Bronze medal match | Bronze medal match | Bronze medal match |
| N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 8 | 21 | 21 | | | | | | | | | |
| N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 8 | 21 | 21 | N1 | Chen Long (CHN) | 21 | 9 | 21 | | | | | | C1 | Kevin Cordón (GUA) | 11 | 13 | |
| | | | | | P1 | Chou Tien-chen (TPE) | 14 | 21 | 14 | | | | | | J1 | Anthony Sinisuka Ginting (INA) | 21 | 21 | |