Badminton · Level 7: Upper-Advanced · Sub-level 7.2
Women's Singles
10 tests · 100 facts · updated 29 October 2026 · markdown
Women's singles rallies are often longer and more patient than men's, with points built over many shots. The high, deep serve is still common, because fewer players can smash it hard, and many points are won by accurate placement and movement into all four corners. Deception plays a large part: Chinese Taipei's Tai Tzu-ying is famous for her wrist play, and a hold at the net, made possible by arriving early and balanced, freezes the opponent before the shot. Under the Laws in force from January 2027 a game goes to 15 points, as in every event.
Indonesia's Susi Susanti won the first Olympic title in 1992, followed by Bang Soo-hyun of South Korea in 1996, Gong Zhichao in 2000 and Zhang Ning, who won in 2004 and 2008. Li Xuerui won in 2012, and Spain's Carolina Marín, a left-hander from Huelva with three world titles, became the first non-Asian woman to win it in 2016, beating India's P. V. Sindhu. Chen Yufei beat Tai Tzu-ying in Tokyo, and An Se-young won Paris 2024, 28 years after Korea's first gold.
Japan's Nozomi Okuhara won the world title in 2017 and Akane Yamaguchi in 2021 and 2022. Saina Nehwal gave India its first Olympic badminton medal in 2012, and Ratchanok Intanon became Thailand's first world champion in 2013, aged 18. The facts below cover the style and tactics of the event, its Olympic and world champions, and the players from Asia and Europe who shaped it.
Each test below is ten questions on Insporta. The list under a test is what the questions check: one fact per question, with the source it was written from. Read it before the test, or come back from a wrong answer.
Test 1The women's singles gameTake a test
More rallies built over many shots.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
High serves stay common.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · recall
A deep serve is harder to punish.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · recall
Placement and movement.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Long coverage.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 9 · recall
Deny the attack.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · applied
All events use 15-point games from 2027.
Source: BWF Laws of Badminton 2027 (player's view) · recall
Build, then attack.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · recall
Serve-only scoring until 2006, rally scoring to 21 from 2006 to 2026, games to 15 from 2027.
Source: BWF history (bwfbadminton.com) and the BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 1 · recall
A deep serve is hard to attack.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · applied
Test 2Patience and deceptionTake a test
Her deceptive wrist play is famous.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
She lost the final to Chen Yufei.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
More shots, more chances.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Holding delays the stroke.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 7 · recall
Time allows choices.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 7 · recall
Patience counters feints.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · applied
Building points.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · recall
Early, hold, wait, change.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 7 · recall
Increasing disguise.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 7 · recall
Holding misleads the opponent.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 7 · applied
Test 3Olympic champions from 1992 to 2008Take a test
Indonesia's Susi Susanti.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Both won gold in Barcelona.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
South Korea's Bang Soo-hyun.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
China's Gong Zhichao.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
China's Zhang Ning won twice.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
For Indonesia in 1996 and the Netherlands in 2004.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
Camilla Martin.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
1992, 1996, 2000, 2004.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
1992, 1996, 2000.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
The first women's Olympic champion.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
Test 4Olympic champions from 2012 to 2024Take a test
China's Li Xuerui, London.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Spain's Marín, Rio.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
India's Sindhu took silver.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
China's Chen Yufei.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
South Korea's An Se-young.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
China's He Bingjiao.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Every earlier champion was Asian.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
2012, 2016, 2020, 2024.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
2016, 2020, 2024.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
An Se-young won Paris 2024.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
Test 5Carolina MarínTake a test
Spanish, from Huelva.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
2014, 2015 and 2018.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
A left-hander.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
An aggressive style.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
A European at the very top.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Huelva, Marín's home city.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Mirrored angles.
Source: General badminton reference · applied
2014, 2015, 2018.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
2014, 2016, 2018.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Marín's record.
Source: General badminton reference · applied
Test 6The rise of JapanTake a test
Okuhara in Glasgow.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
A famous long final.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Japan's Yamaguchi.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
A fast all-court retriever.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Systematic development.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Japan's first Olympic badminton gold.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Retrievers punish impatience.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · applied
2017, 2021, 2022.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
2016, 2017, 2021.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Okuhara won in Glasgow.
Source: General badminton reference · applied
Test 7India's singles starsTake a test
London 2012.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
She lost the final to Marín.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Tokyo 2020 bronze.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Basel 2019.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
A pioneer.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
The Gopichand academy is in Hyderabad.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Gopichand.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
2012, 2016, 2020.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
2016, 2019, 2021.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Sindhu won silver in Rio.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
Test 8Korea and An Se-youngTake a test
Korean.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Copenhagen 2023.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Bang Soo-hyun, Atlanta 1996.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
1996 and 2024.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
A brilliant defender.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Everything returns.
Source: BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 8 · recall
Barcelona 1992.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
1996, 2023, 2024.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
1992, 1996, 2024.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Great defence makes attackers work.
Source: General badminton reference · applied
Test 9Chinese Taipei and ThailandTake a test
Guangzhou 2013.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
She was 18.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Tokyo, beaten by Chen Yufei.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
Huelva 2021.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
A graceful style.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Copenhagen 2023.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
2013, 2021, 2023.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
2021, 2024, 2028.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
Guangzhou 2013.
Source: General badminton reference · applied
Test 10Europe in women's singlesTake a test
Olympic and three-time world champion.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Copenhagen 1999.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Depth of participation.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Gilmour, a European medallist.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Smaller playing base.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Rio 2016.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
For the Netherlands, Athens 2004.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · recall
1999, 2004, 2016.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
Marín leads.
Source: General badminton reference · recall
The Spanish champion.
Source: Olympedia, Olympic badminton results · applied
Questions people ask
- Why is the high serve still used in women's singles?
- Fewer players can punish a deep high serve with a hard smash, so it stays a safe way to start a patient rally. In men's singles it is rare for the opposite reason.
- Who was the first non-Asian woman to win Olympic badminton singles gold?
- Carolina Marín of Spain, at Rio 2016, where she beat P. V. Sindhu of India in the final. Every earlier women's singles champion had been Asian.
- Who has won the Olympic women's singles title twice?
- China's Zhang Ning, in 2004 and 2008. She is the only repeat champion in the event.
- How many world titles has Carolina Marín won?
- Three: in Copenhagen in 2014, Jakarta in 2015 and Nanjing in 2018. Her Olympic gold came in between, in 2016.
- What is a hold at the net?
- The player keeps the racket still for a moment before playing the shot, which freezes the opponent or sends them the wrong way. It only works if the player arrives at the shuttle early and balanced.
- Which Indian women have won Olympic singles medals in badminton?
- Saina Nehwal won bronze in 2012, India's first Olympic badminton medal. P. V. Sindhu won silver in Rio 2016 and bronze in Tokyo, and became world champion in Basel in 2019.
- How many points will a women's singles game have from 2027?
- Fifteen, the same as every other event. Women's singles games went to 11 under serve-only scoring before 2006 and to 21 under rally scoring from 2006 to 2026.
Sources
BWF Coaches' Manual Level 1 (2017), BWF regulations and history, Olympedia; original questions authored, nothing reproduced. Numbered rules belong to the Rules category (Badminton - Laws of Badminton).
- General badminton reference48
- Olympedia, Olympic badminton results35
- BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 89
- BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 75
- BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 91
- BWF Laws of Badminton 2027 (player's view)1
- BWF history (bwfbadminton.com) and the BWF Coaches' Manual L1, Module 11