Alex Lanier
Lanier in 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 26 January 2005 Caen, France | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years active | 2020–present | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | France | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Badminton | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Kęstutis Navickas | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Men's singles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career record | 207 wins, 69 losses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 7 (5 August 2025) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 10 (10 March 2026) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BWF profile | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Alex Lanier (born 26 January 2005) is a French badminton player.[1] He won the gold medal in the 2025 European Championships.[2] He became the first ever French player to win a BWF World Tour Super 750 tournament.[3] In the juniors, Lanier was a boys' singles gold medalist at the 2022 European Junior Championships, and a bronze medalist at the 2023 World Junior Championships.
Career
Alex Lanier started playing badminton at the age of 3 and later joined the Dives-sur-Mer badminton club. In 2019, he left the Dives-sur-Mer, to join the club of Strasbourg, to compete in the French interclub division. In 2020, he joined INSEP at the age of only 15.[4]
In June 2021, Lanier competed in the Lithuanian International tournament and won his first international title in the final by defeating Canada's player B. R. Sankeerth.[5] Afterwards, he managed to advance to the final at the Latvia International, but lost to India's Meiraba Luwang Maisnam.[6] He bounced back at the Italian International and won his second international title by defeating Czech player Jan Louda.[7]
Lanier opened the 2022 season by winning the Estonian International.[8] He then clinched the boys' singles title at the European Junior Championships.[9] In October, he secured his first win on a World Tour event at the age of only 17, as he defeated Japanese Takuma Obayashi at the Canada Open.[10]
Lanier started the 2023 season as a finalist in the Estonian International.[11] He participated at the European Mixed Team Championships,[12] where the team finished runner-up.[13] He then went to win his first title of the year at the Polish Open.[14] In October, he won a bronze medal at the World Junior Championships.[15] At the end of the season, hi reached the finals in the Irish Open,[16] and semi-finals in the BWF World Tour, the Hylo Open and Syed Modi International.[17][18]
Lanier won his first title in 2024 at the Luxembourg Open.[19] In the next tournament, he finished as finalist in the Denmark Challenge and won the Nantes International.[20][21] He played at the Canada Open, losing the final to Koki Watanabe.[22] Lanier then won the Japan Open title at a young age 19 years old. He defeated seeded player en-route to the final.[23] The 19-year-old did it in sensational fashion, taking down world number 1 Shi Yuqi in rubber games in the semi-finals. By winning the Japan Open, he became the first ever French player to win a BWF World Tour Super 750 event.[3]
Despite an early losses at the Malaysia and India Opens in January,[24][25] Lanier went on to win his maiden title in 2025 at the Orleans Masters.[26] He then entered to top 10 men's singles at the BWF World ranking on 11 March 2025.[27] In his debut at the All England Open, he managed to reach the semi-finals losing to Lee Chia-hao.[28] He managed to win the 2025 European Championships title, becoming the first ever French men's singles player to win the title.[2]
Achievements
European Championships
Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Forum, Horsens, Denmark | Toma Junior Popov | 21–17, 21–18 | Gold | [2] |
BWF World Junior Championships
Boys' singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | The Podium, Spokane, United States | Hu Zhean | 20–22, 20–22 | Bronze | [15] |
European Junior Championships
Boys' singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Athletic Hall Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia | Jakob Houe | 21–18, 21–12 | Gold | [9] |
BWF World Tour (4 titles, 2 runners-up)
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[29] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, and the BWF Tour Super 100.[30]
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Canada Open | Super 100 | Takuma Obayashi | 21–12, 12–21, 21–13 | Winner | [10] |
| 2024 | Canada Open | Super 500 | Koki Watanabe | 22–20, 17–21, 6–21 | Runner-up | [22] |
| 2024 | Japan Open | Super 750 | Chou Tien-chen | 21–17, 22–20 | Winner | [3] |
| 2025 | Orléans Masters | Super 300 | Lin Chun-yi | 21–13, 21–18 | Winner | [26] |
| 2025 | Japan Open | Super 750 | Shi Yuqi | 17–21, 15–21 | Runner-up | |
| 2026 | Orléans Masters | Super 300 | Toma Junior Popov | 21–11, 21–13 | Winner |
BWF International Challenge / Series (6 titles, 4 runners-up)
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Lithuanian International | B. R. Sankeerth | 18–21, 23–21, 21–15 | Winner | [5] |
| 2021 | Latvia International | Meiraba Maisnam | 15–21, 21–12, 20–22 | Runner-up | [6] |
| 2021 | Italian International | Jan Louda | 21–12, 18–21, 21–11 | Winner | [7] |
| 2022 | Estonian International | Kok Jing Hong | 22–20, 21–15 | Winner | [8] |
| 2023 | Estonian International | Yushi Tanaka | 13–21, 21–15, 12–21 | Runner-up | [11] |
| 2023 | Polish Open | Kalle Koljonen | 21–14, 21–15 | Winner | [14] |
| 2023 | Irish Open | Nhat Nguyen | 13–21, 19–21 | Runner-up | [16] |
| 2024 | Luxembourg Open | Jason Teh | 21–17, 21–15 | Winner | [19] |
| 2024 | Denmark Challenge | Yushi Tanaka | 21–15, 12–21, 11–21 | Runner-up | [20] |
| 2024 | Nantes International | Pablo Abián | 21–14, 21–13 | Winner | [21] |
- BWF International Challenge tournament
- BWF International Series tournament
- BWF Future Series tournament
References
- ^ "Alex Lanier | Profile". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
- ^ a b c Prigent, Irène (13 April 2025). "Badminton : Alex Lanier, originaire du Calvados, sacré champion d'Europe" (in French). France Bleu. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
- ^ a b c "Alex Lanier wins Japan Open at age 19, a first for French badminton". Le Monde. 25 August 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
- ^ Chatel, Aline (5 July 2020). "Les pépites du sport à Caen (3/5). Alex Lanier, le prodige du badminton" (in French). Actu.fr. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- ^ a b Raftery, Alan (14 June 2021). "Alex Lanier Remember the name". Ukrainian Badminton Federation. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
- ^ a b Raftery, Alan (30 August 2021). "Polina Buhrova leads the way for Ukraine". Badminton Europe. Archived from the original on 3 October 2022. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Perfly Italian International 2021 : Alex Lanier vainqueur !" (in French). French Badminton Federation. 20 December 2021. Archived from the original on 3 October 2022. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- ^ a b Godin, Stéphane (16 January 2022). "Tout juste remis du Covid, le Strasbourgeois Alex Lanier remporte l'Open d'Estonie" (in French). DNA. Archived from the original on 23 March 2026. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ a b Gonzalez Martinez, Sara (27 August 2022). "Writing history in the 2022 European Junior Championships". Badminton Europe. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
- ^ a b "L'Alsacien Alex Lanier entre dans l'histoire en remportant son premier tournoi du World Tour au Canada" (in French). L'Alsace. 3 October 2021. Archived from the original on 3 October 2022. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- ^ a b Briard, Gaëtan (15 January 2023). "Badminton. En Estonie, le Normand Alex Lanier (17 ans) perd en finale mais se distingue encore" (in French). Ouest-France. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ "Badminton - Championnats d'Europe Une France d'or ou d'argent ?" (in French). L'Alsace. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ "La France médaillée d'argent aux Championnats d'Europe par équipes mixtes" (in French). L'Équipe. 18 February 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ a b Fuchs, Thomas (27 March 2023). "Lanier wins International Challenge". Badminton Europe. Retrieved 23 March 2026 – via Ukrainian Badminton Federation.
- ^ a b Pineau, Valentin (9 October 2023). "Badminton. "Alex Lanier en bronze, c'est vraiment un exploit", juge le coach des Bleuets" (in French). Ouest-France. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
- ^ a b "Nhat Nguyen produces brilliant comeback to win Irish Open". RTÉ. 18 November 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ "Hylo Open: Chou Inches Towards Record". Badminton World Federation. 5 November 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ "Le Strasbourgeois Alex Lanier à une marche de la finale en Inde" (in French). DNA. 1 December 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ a b "Hohes Niveau und ernüchternde Ergebnisse für die Luxemburger: So liefen die 3. Luxembourg Open" (in German). Tageblatt. 6 May 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ a b "Lanier battu en finale à Farum" (in French). L'Alsace. 11 May 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ a b "Badminton - Forza Nantes : En patron Alex Lanier remporte le Nantes International Challenge". Journal Nantes Sport (in French). 16 June 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ a b Sukumar, Dev (8 July 2024). "Canada Open: 'Dream Come True'". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ Kumar, Prem (25 August 2024). "Japan Open: Lanier's here". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
- ^ Boopathy, K. M. (8 January 2025). "Kunlavut and Lanier impress at Malaysia Open". New Straits Times. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ^ Mohanarangan, Vinayakk (17 January 2025). "India Open Super 750: Kiran George's stirring fightback the highlight; Satwik-Chirag and PV Sindhu post contrasting wins". The India Express. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ^ a b Huguen, Morgane (9 March 2025). "Badminton. « Je suis très fier » : Impérial, le Normand Alex Lanier remporte le Masters d'Orléans" (in French). Ouest-France. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ^ "Alex Lanier grimpe à la 10e place mondiale en simple, Toma Junior Popov 17e" (in French). L'Équipe. 11 March 2025. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ^ "Lee one of three first-time finalists through in morning session". All England Badminton. 15 March 2025. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
- ^ Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
- ^ Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
External links
- Alex Lanier at BWF.TournamentSoftware.com (archived)