Silver lining: Thailand badminton star glitters at 2024 Olympics

Kunlavut Vitidsarn sparkled yet again for Thailand on the badminton court to scoop silver at the 2024 Olympics. Kunlavut emerged as the third Thai badminton player to claim a World Championship title in August last year, joining the ranks of Ratchanok Intanon and the mixed doubles pair Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai.

The historic victory set the stage to claim silver yesterday, August 5 at the Paris Olympics.

Born on May 11, 2001, Kunlavut, also known as View, is the son of Nattawat and Natkanok Vitidsarn. His younger sister, Sarunrak, also a badminton player, recently won the women’s singles title in the Under-19 category at the Toyota Thailand Open 2024, earning her a spot in the World Junior Championships in Nanchang, China, from September 30 to October 13.

Kunlavut’s journey in badminton began at the age of seven when he accompanied his father, a badminton coach, to the courts. Initially playing for fun and to combat his allergies, he soon started training seriously. His early training took place at the Senanikom Badminton Club under the mentorship of Trirong Limsakul and Mettri Amatayakul.

In 2009, Kunlavut competed in the Under-9 category and consistently won titles over the next few years. Inspired by Ratchanok Intanon’s World Championship triumph, he moved to Ban Thong Yod Badminton School in 2014. This move opened doors for national and international competitions. He first competed in the Thai Youth Championships in the under-14 category and won, continuing to dominate in subsequent years, winning titles in the under-14, under-16, and under-19 categories.

Internationally, Kunlavut made a mark by winning the under-15 Asian Youth Championship in 2014 and continued to win in the under-17 category in 2016 and 2017. His stellar performances culminated in winning the World Junior Championship in the men’s singles category in Indonesia on October 22, 2017, making him Thailand’s first male world junior champion at just 16 years and five months old.

The same day marked a memorable achievement for Ban Thong Yod Badminton School, as Ratchanok won the women’s singles title at the Yonex Denmark Open, her first title of 2017. Kunlavut’s victory signalled his potential to follow in Ratchanok’s footsteps. In 2018, he defended his World Junior Championship title, becoming a two-time champion by age 17.

International challenges

Transitioning to adult competitions, Kunlavut competed in various international challenges and the World Tour Super Series between 2018 and 2019, winning five titles. These included the Yonex Sunrise Nepal International Series 2018, the 28th Iran Fajr International Challenge 2019, the Yonex Polish Open 2019, the Finnish Open 2019, and the Spanish International 2019.

In 2022, Kunlavut won a gold medal at the SEA Games in Vietnam by defeating Kok Jing Hong. He also reached the finals of the World Championships in Tokyo, losing to world No.1 Viktor Axelsen, becoming the first Thai player to achieve this feat.

In August last year, Kunlavut made history by winning the men’s singles world championship. This achievement earned him the title of Outstanding Male Amateur Athlete at the National Sports Day awards on December 16, 2023, for the second time.

This year, Kunlavut, ranked eighth globally, competed in the Olympics for the first time at 23 years old. He won the silver medal in yesterday’s defining match against Danish player Viktor, reported KhaoSod.