The 5 Fastest Smashes in Badminton Ever

Who is your favorite badminton player? Lin Dan? Saina Nehwal? PV Sindhu? Or Viktor Axelson? Now we all know about these famous badminton players and the fame of Badminton. But Badminton was first started as a pastime, now it was considered the 2nd most participated sport in the world. If you are one of the die-hard fans of badminton, here are some important facts that will help you gain more knowledge. In this article, we will discuss the top five fastest smashes in badminton.

Tan Boon Heong- 493 Kph

In 2013, one of the world’s top producers of badminton racquets brought Tan Boon Heong and Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia in order to break the Guinness World Record for the fastest badminton hit using the Yonex Nanoray Z-Speed badminton racket. In the end, Lee managed to set a smash speed of 456 Kmph(283.3 mph) and Tan set a new world record with a smash clocking up to 493 Kph(306.3 mph). It was considered the fastest recorded non-competitive smash.

Now, we will discuss the 5 top smashes in the competitive tournaments.

1) Mads Pieler Kolding- 426 Kmph

He is a Danish Badminton player specializing in doubles. In the 2016 European championships, he won the gold medal in the men’s double event partnered with Mads Conrad-Petersen. In the 2017 Premier Badminton League(PBL) against Mumbai Rockets, Mads Pieler Kolding produced a remarkable smash at 426 Kmph representing the Chennai Smashers. He is also one of the tallest badminton players, 6 feet 8 inches.

2) Lee Chong Wei- 408 Kmph

He has never won a World Championship or an Olympic gold medal, but he has won the hearts of several people. He is considered one of the greatest badminton players of all time. His fans still consider his Malaysian legacy to be unmatched. In 2014, he was convicted of doping, hence he missed several matches and tournaments. He made a comeback in the 2015 Hong Kong Open. This is when he produced one of his iconic smashes of all time. During the event, he created a stunning smash that clocked up to 408 Kmph. This is the second-fastest smash in Badminton history. It is notable that he has won the Olympics silver medal three times.

3) Jan O Jorgensen- 407 Kmph

Jan O Jorgensen is considered one of the successful badminton players of all time. He won the men’s singles title in the European Championships of 2014. He was also a bronze medalist at the 2015 World Championships. Later, he joined Denmark winning team at the 2016 Thomas Cup in China. He is known for his famous wrist shots. In the 2016 Malaysia Open Superseries Premier, he smashed a cracking shot against Lee Choing Wei in the semifinals. This smash clocked up to 407 Kmph and was considered the third fastest smash of all time. But unfortunately, he lost the match.

4) Viktor Axelsen- 404 Kmph

Viktor Axelson is a 23 years old Danish badminton player. He was the 2017 World Champion and the bronze medalist at the Rio Olympics, 2016. He was crowned European men’s singles champion in 2016 and 2018. He is known for his hard-hitting smashes. In the Japan Open Superseries, 2015, he hit the fourth fastest smash in the history of Badminton. Though he lost the final tournament to Lin Dan, he hit a smash of 404 Kmph and it was considered the best smash of his career. He started his career in Badminton at the age of 6 at the Odense badminton club. Later, he was named as 2004 player of the year by Odense Badminton Club.

5)Parupalli Kashyap- 401 Kmph

Parupalli Kashyap, a badminton player from India has a world record of hitting crackers of a smash clocking 401 Kmph in 2015 Japan Open Superseries, defeating K. Srikanth. It was considered one of the fastest smashes in badminton history. He has also won the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Parupalli Kashyap was the first Indian male player to reach the Olympics quarter-final in 2012. His last tournament was the Japan Open Superseries in 2015. He married his fellow badminton player, Saina Nehwal in 2018. He now trains at Gopichand Badminton Academy and he was also awarded the Arjuna Award in 2012.