Kunlavut Vitidsarn dedicated his stunning BWF World Championships victory in Copenhagen, Denmark, to his late childhood coach as he made history as Thailand’s first men’s singles world champion after he beat Kodai Naraoka on Sunday.
The 22-year-old had to do it the hard way against the Japanese as he battled back from a game down to win 19-21, 21-18, 21-7 in a marathon battle of almost two hours long at the Royal Arena.
The length of this contest was hardly surprising considering the matching styles of both shuttlers in engaging in long rallies, but Vitidsarn found several extra gears in the deciding match to come away a deserved champion.
“This has been a dream for me since I was a child. When I was young I promised my coach that I would get the gold medal. He passed away, and I dedicate this gold medal to him.
“I needed to be prepared for a long match with Kodai. We know each other’s game because we have played since our junior days. You have to be very patient with him, and it was tiring. I didn’t have any energy left to celebrate,” Vitidsarn told the Badminton World Federation.
He joined Ratchanok Intanon as Thailand's singles world champion.
An Se-young also made history after becoming South Korea’s women’s singles champion when she easily defeated Spaniard Carolina Marin 21-12, 21-10 after a 42-minute contest.
In the women’s doubles, Cheng Qing Chen-Jia Yi Fan won their third consecutive women’s doubles title after they outclassed Indonesians Apriyani Rahayu-Siti Fadia 21-16, 21-12.
Seo went on to cap a magnificent day for himself and his country by bagging a second gold medal in the men’s doubles when he teamed up with Kang Min-hyuk to beat home pair Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen 14-21, 21-15, 21-17.
