Luan won the All England Open Badminton Championships in men's singles in 1983, reversing a loss to Morten Frost in the 1982 final. He was a key member of China's Thomas Cup (men's international) teams of 1982 and 1984, the first of which narrowly won and the second of which narrowly lost the World Team title to arch-rival Indonesia. In these final round Thomas Cup show-downs Luan defeated Rudy Hartono and Liem Swie King.