Ye Zhaoying is a retired women's singles badminton

Badminton

Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...

 player from Zhejiang

Zhejiang

Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...

, the People's Republic of China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

 who rates as one of the finest that China or any nation has produced. Officially ranked as the number one player in the world for the first time in December 1995, she lost but regained that ranking several times during her career. Her best years as a world-class player overlapped those of the slightly older Susi Susanti and Bang Soo-hyun

Bang Soo-hyun

Bang Soo-Hyun is a former badminton player from South Korea who was one of the world's leading women's singles players of the 1990s. She was a contemporary and rival of Indonesia's Susi Susanti and China's Ye Zhaoying and recorded wins over both in major badminton tournaments...

, in what some see as a "golden" era in women's badminton.

She retired after the Sydney (2000) Olympic Games

2000 Summer Olympics

The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

.

Achievement

Her main achievements include winning the World Grand Prix

World Badminton Grand Prix

The World Badminton Grand Prix was an annual badminton tournament organized by the International Badminton Federation to crown the best badminton player of the year. The tournament only invited the top eight players in the year-end world rankings. The tournament started in 1983, with the last...

 in 1995, 1997 and 1999, the IBF World Championships in 1995

1995 IBF World Championships

The 9th IBF World Championships were held in Lausanne, Switzerland, between 22 May and 28 May 1995.-Medalists:-Men's Singles:- Women's Singles:- Men's Doubles:- Women's Doubles:- Mixed Doubles:-Medal account:-External links:*...

 and 1997

1997 IBF World Championships

The 10th IBF World Championships were held in Glasgow, Scotland, between 24 May and 1 June 1997.-Medalists:-Seeds:# Poul-Erik Høyer Larsen# Heryanto Arbi# Ardy Wiranata# Sun Jun# Park Sung-woo# Peter Rasmussen# Alan Budikusuma...

, and the IBF World Cup in 1995. She played on Chinese teams

China national badminton team

The China national badminton team represents the People's Republic of China in international badminton team competitions and is controlled by the Badminton Association of the People's Republic of China, the governing body for badminton in China....

 that won the Uber Cup

Uber Cup

The Uber Cup, sometimes called the World Team Championships for Women, is a major international badminton competition contested by women's national badminton teams. First held in 1956-1957 and contested at three year intervals, it has been contested every two years since 1984 when its scheduled...

 in 1992, 1998 and 2000 and the Sudirman Cup

Sudirman Cup

Sudirman Cup is the world mixed team badminton championship which takes place every two years. There are five matches in every round: men and women's singles, men and women's doubles and mixed doubles. The Cup is named after Dick Sudirman, a former Indonesian badminton player and the founder of the...

 in 1995, 1997 and 1999. She won the prestigious All-England title

All England Open Badminton Championships

The All England Open Badminton Championships, or simply All England, is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious badminton tournaments. Played annually, it developed after the success of world's first badminton tournament held in Guildford in 1898...

 in 1997, 1998 and 1999.

Her other titles include: Asian Badminton Championships in 1992, 1994, 1995, 1998,1999; Japan Open

Japan Open (badminton)

The Japan Open is an annual badminton tournament held in Japan. It became part of the BWF Super Series tournaments in 2007.-Past winners:...

 in 1993, 1996, 1999; Indonesia Open

Indonesia Open (badminton)

The Indonesia Open in an annual badminton tournament organized by Persatuan Bulutangkis Seluruh Indonesia and held in Indonesia since 1982. It became part of the BWF Super Series tournament in 2007 and got the Premier Super Series status in 2011....

 in 1992, 1993; Denmark Open

Denmark Open

The Denmark Open, or formerly known as Danish Open, is an annual badminton tournament held in Denmark and organized by Danmarks Badminton Forbund.- History :...

 in 1993; Hong Kong Open

Hong Kong Open (badminton)

The Hong Kong Open is an annual badminton tournament held in Hong Kong since 1982, but it did not take place annually. It is organized by Hong Kong Badminton Association and it became one of the Super Series tournament in 2007. In 2008, Wang Chen became the first home player to win the Hong Kong...

 in 1993; Asian Cup of Badminton in 1994;China Open

China Open (badminton)

The China Open is an annual badminton tournament held in People's Republic of China. It became part of the BWF Super Series tournaments in 2007.-Past winners:...

 in 1995; Swedish Open

Swedish Open (badminton)

The Swedish Open was an open badminton tournament that was annually held from 1956 to 1999 after which the organizer, Svenska Badmintonförbundet, could no longer find a suitable sponsor. To some extent it has been replaced by the Swedish International Stockholm tournament.-Winners:...

 in 1995; US Open in 1995; Singapore Open

Singapore Open (badminton)

The Singapore Open is an badminton event that has been held in Singapore annually since 1990, and which is now part of the BWF Super Series tournament that began 2007....

 in1992,1998,1999;Thailand Open

Thailand Open (badminton)

The Thailand Open in badminton is an open international championships held in Thailand since 1984. It was halted in 1986, 1998, 2002 and 2010.-Past winners:-External links:***...

 in 2000 . She was a member of the Chinese Women's Badminton Team that won the Asian Games

Asian Games

The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...

 in 1998. In addition, she obtained a bronze medal in the Sydney Olympic Games

Badminton at the 2000 Summer Olympics

Badminton was held at The Dome and Exhibition Complex at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney from September 17–23, 2000. The competition included five events ....

 in 2000, having been upset in the quarterfinals of the '96 Games in Atlanta

Badminton at the 1996 Summer Olympics

Badminton at the 1996 Summer Olympics included the four events held at the previous Games as well as a fifth event: mixed doubles. An additional change to the tournament was the playoff game for the bronze medal rather than the awarding of two bronzes.The tournament was single-elimination...

. Ye Zhaoying was elected to the World Badminton Hall of Fame

Badminton Hall of Fame

The Badminton Hall of Fame honors players who have shown exceptional skill at badminton, all-time great coaches and referees, and other major contributors to the game.There is also a USA Badminton Hall of Fame and a Badminton Canada's Hall of Fame ....

 in 2009.

External links

• BWF Player Profile