Okuhara wins historic world badminton title

August 28, 2017

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND- Nozomi Okuhara became the first Japanese to win the women's singles title at the World Badminton Championships, in Glasgow, Scotland, on Sunday, defeating a rival in a grueling final match.

Okuhara, 12th in the world rankings and bronze medalist at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games, edged Sindhu Pusarla of India, ranked fourth in the world, 21-19, 20-22, 22-20.

Okuhara, 22, also became the first Japanese to capture a gold medal at the world badminton championships in 40 years. Etsuko Toganoo and Emiko Ueno won the women's doubles title at the first world tournament in 1977.

Okuhara, who stands 156 centimeters tall, was defeated by Sindhu, who is 23 centimeters taller than her, in the semifinals at the Rio Olympics.

Making use of lessons learned from her loss to Sindhu's sharp smash in Rio, Okuhara tried to prevent her opponent from using the shot by returning the shuttle to the backcourt and hitting hairpin net shots. Jiji Press