What will be remembered as the defining memory of the last dance of the golden generation of women’s singles badminton in 2024? Certainly not the Paris Olympics podium that any badminton fan would have guessed in their wildest guesses—a Se-Yuwa, sure, but with He Bingjiao and Gregoria Mariska Tunzung? Not at all.
Bingjiao, despite his classical style, was never written as glittering, glittering, gold for generations. With her reserved, ambitious, sometimes chatty demeanor, she was always an elegant matte gold. Even with a silver medal, she may go down in the next 20 years as one of the best memories of the Paris Games.
Absent from that podium were the late, then sudden realization that OGGG – the original golden generation – was gone. No Carolina Marin, PV Sindhu, Chen Yufei, Tai Ju-ying, Akane Yamaguchi, Nozomi Okuhara, or Ratchanok Intanon. Bingjiao and Tunjung are two of the most deserving women to medal at the Olympics and big props to the elegant badminton they won in Paris. Only they were unexpected.
It wasn’t always the ambition though, as they’ve all won – lost a lot – but the OGGG group has spent a good dozen years fighting at a very high intensity, often clutch in mix-and-match tournaments. It elevates them to a different plane, where badminton has ceased to be about ticking boxes, settling scores, earning petty revenge or denying long-term defeat.
An angry and apparently unforgiving circuit means they’ll dust themselves off, get up and go to war once more. They push the limits of endurance, flexibility, deceptive skills and speed from one title to the next. Sheer hard work left them with no jealousy or insecurity towards each other, as the national identities were also true appreciation of each other’s efforts and the high standards of excellence they brought to fruition. Surrounded by negativity, this golden generation has no ugly competition. They all bind to ACL trauma in its various stages. Badminton has only a common language, but tacit respect is at the heart of every sport.
So the biggest moment of 2024 may not be the Olympic final and the gold medal. It was Bingjiao standing on the podium, holding her silver in one hand and holding a small Spanish pin to tell Marin that she was the equal winner.
In their semi-final, Marin led until going for a hop smash, “No, no, no, it’s broken.” Bingjiao would gently help her get up and leave the court in her final Olympic match, applauding how she fought. Later on the podium, the Chinese took along a tiny Spanish pin to remind the world that Marin could have been on the podium had it not been for his third heartbreaking mid-match injury.
At an event with Bingjiao in November, Marin said she hadn’t picked up a racket since that fateful day when she broke her knee. “Now I’m better, now I’m happy. Slowly but surely. It’s important to build muscles first. And go step by step. I want to retire to the badminton court in the future,” he set his next basic goal. “Like I said, there’s no rush. It’s a dream, but not an obsession,” he added.
Known for her fierce presence on the court, Marin once defeated Bingjiao 16–20 in the decider at the World Championships. Bingjiao broke down in tears that day, unable to stop Marin’s terrifying robbery. But Bingjiao belongs to the golden generation as she fought again and again after that and lined up for the Olympic final a few years later.
Marin felt grateful though. “I know Chinese culture very well. And it’s not easy what she did, keeping me in mind at that moment. Being on the Olympic podium with a silver medal, and showing the pin all the time. I will never forget that moment. I will never forget that moment and will always be grateful,” she said.
For Bingjiao, ever authentic, it all came naturally. “She’s an Olympic champion and a three-time world champion. She showed me how fast you can be. Off the court, she showed me, showed us, how mentally strong you can be. So I’ll always be happy for her,” she said. .
Heartbreak for sure – Bingjiao didn’t take gold, Marin didn’t make the podium. They could not win technically. But Marin said they now share a unique bond, one that doesn’t require a gold disc. “Everybody saw it worldwide, and when I saw it with my own eyes for the first time, I was very surprised,” says Marin. The breakup wasn’t ideal, the ending wasn’t perfect – but it was the beginning of a most unlikely friendship.
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