{"id":3658,"date":"2026-04-16T04:24:49","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T22:54:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/end-of-an-era-viktor-axelsen-retires-at-32-lakshya-sen-pays-emotional-tribute-badminton-news\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T04:24:49","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T22:54:49","slug":"end-of-an-era-viktor-axelsen-retires-at-32-lakshya-sen-pays-emotional-tribute-badminton-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/end-of-an-era-viktor-axelsen-retires-at-32-lakshya-sen-pays-emotional-tribute-badminton-news\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018End of an Era\u2019: Viktor Axelsen retires at 32, Lakshya Sen pays emotional tribute | Badminton News"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\"\u2018End<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen (PTI Photo)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NEW DELHI: The badminton world was left stunned on Wednesday as Denmark\u2019s two-time Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen announced his retirement at the age of 32, citing persistent back problems that have made it impossible to \u201ccompete and train at the highest level.\u201d The decision brings down the curtain on one of the most dominant and transformative careers in modern badminton, marking the end of an era defined by excellence, consistency, and global influence.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. <\/span>SUBSCRIBE NOW!<\/a>Axelsen, who underwent back surgery in April last year, admitted that accepting the situation had been \u201cincredibly difficult,\u201d but acknowledged that his body could no longer keep up with the demands of elite sport. His retirement comes after a glittering career that included Olympic gold medals at Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024, along with two World Championship titles and a bronze at the Rio 2016 Games. Standing at 6 ft 4 in, Axelsen redefined the physical possibilities in badminton, combining reach, power, and precision to dominate the men\u2019s singles circuit.His achievements extended beyond medals. Axelsen spent over 100 consecutive weeks as world No. 1, a feat bettered only by Malaysian legend Lee Chong Wei. He also became the first non-Asian Olympic champion in men\u2019s singles since 1996 and later emulated his idol Lin Dan by winning back-to-back Olympic golds. Off the court, his ability to connect with fans \u2014 particularly in China, where he speaks Mandarin \u2014 made him one of the sport\u2019s most beloved global ambassadors. <\/p>\n

\n
\"Viktor<\/p>\n

Viktor Axelsen and Lakshya Sen (PTI Photo)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

India\u2019s Lakshya Sen led the tributes, calling Axelsen \u201cone of the greatest to ever play the game.\u201d Reflecting on their journey, Sen recalled training with the Dane in Dubai and facing him on some of the sport\u2019s biggest stages, including the All England Open and the Paris Olympics. \u201cWhat truly sets you apart isn\u2019t just the champion you are, it\u2019s the person you are,\u201d Sen wrote, highlighting Axelsen\u2019s humility and character beyond his on-court dominance.Former India coach Vimal Kumar described the retirement as \u201ca significant loss for the sport,\u201d praising Axelsen\u2019s professionalism and lasting impact. As badminton now enters a transition phase, Axelsen leaves behind a legacy that transcends records \u2014 one built on discipline, innovation, and an enduring influence on generations to come.<\/div>\n


\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen (PTI Photo) NEW DELHI: The badminton world was left stunned on Wednesday as Denmark\u2019s two-time Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen announced his retirement at the age of 32, citing persistent back problems that have made it impossible to \u201ccompete and train at the highest level.\u201d The decision brings down the curtain on one […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3659,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[263],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3658","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3658"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3658\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}