Kirsten Thorndahl
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 9 April 1928 | |||||||||||||||||
| Died | 21 September 2007 (aged 79) | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Denmark | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Badminton | |||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Left[1] | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Kirsten Thorndahl (also known as 'Kirsten Granlund; 9 April 1928 – 21 September 2007) was a Danish badminton player.[2] She reached the All England final 17 times and represented Denmark at the Uber Cup. Thorndahl had won eleven All England titles.[3] She became the first player to become an All England Open champion in all three categories: women's singles, women's doubles and mixed doubles in the same year.[4] Despite sweeping the boards in 1948, Thorndahl did not gained so much success in the singles department despite winning 2 more national championships in 1947 and 1951 which led her to abandon the discipline altogether. She claimed she was too nervous playing alone in the court during singles and it was more physically demanded.[4]
Achievements
International tournaments (25 titles, 16 runners-up)
Women's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | All England Open | Marie Ussing | 6–11, 11–6, 10–12 | Runner-up |
| 1947 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | walkover | Runner-up |
| 1948 | All England Open | Tonny Ahm | 11–7, 11–0 | Winner |
| 1948 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | 12–11, 5–11, 3–11 | Runner-up |
| 1949 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | 4–11, 3–11 | Runner-up |
| 1950 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | 8–11, 0–11 | Runner-up |
Women's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Agnete Friis Marie Ussing |
15–10, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1947 | All England Open | Tonny Ahm | Aase Schiøtt Jacobsen Marie Ussing |
15–8, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1947 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Aase Schiøtt Jacobsen Marie Ussing |
7–15, 15–5, 4–15 | Runner-up |
| 1948 | All England Open | Tonny Ahm | Queenie Allen Betty Uber |
15–6, 12–15, 15–2 | Winner |
| 1948 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Queenie Allen Betty Uber |
15–4, 15–11 | Winner |
| 1949 | All England Open | Tonny Ahm | Queenie Allen Betty Uber |
8–15, 10–15 | Runner-up |
| 1949 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Inge Birgit Hansen Aase Svendsen |
15–8, 15–1 | Winner |
| 1950 | All England Open | Tonny Ahm | Queenie Allen Betty Uber |
16–17, 15–5, 15–8 | Winner |
| 1950 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Queenie Allen Elisabeth O'Beirne |
15–2, 15–6 | Winner |
| 1951 | All England Open | Tonny Ahm | Mavis Henderson Queenie Webber |
17–15, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1951 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Inge Sørensen Aase Svendsen |
16–17, 18–13, 15–4 | Winner |
| 1952 | Denmark Open | Tonny Ahm | Agnete Friis Aase Schiøtt Jacobsen |
15–7, 15–3 | Winner |
| 1956 | Denmark Open | Anni Jørgensen | Tonny Ahm Aase Schiøtt Jacobsen |
15–2, 15–6 | Winner |
| 1956 | Swedish Open | Anni Jørgensen | Bodil Sterner Tora Pihl |
15–0, 15–1 | Winner |
| 1957 | All England Open | Anni Hammergaard Hansen | Iris Rogers June Timperley |
7–15, 15–11, 15–10 | Winner |
| 1958 | Swedish Open | Anni Hammergaard Hansen | Hanne Andersen Inger Kjærgaard |
18–13, 15–2 | Winner |
| 1960 | All England Open | Inge Birgit Hansen | Judy Devlin Susan Devlin |
3–15, 6–15 | Runner-up |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Denmark Open | Tage Madsen | Poul Holm Marie Ussing |
15–9, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1947 | All England Open | Tage Madsen | Poul Holm Tonny Ahm |
13–15, 15–13, 12–15 | Runner-up |
| 1947 | Denmark Open | Tage Madsen | Poul Holm Aase Schiøtt Jacobsen |
6–15, 15–4, 15–9 | Winner |
| 1948 | All England Open | Jørn Skaarup | Conny Jepsen Aase Svendsen |
15–10, 15–2 | Winner |
| 1948 | Denmark Open | Tage Madsen | Jørn Skaarup Tonny Ahm |
18–13, 8–15, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1949 | Denmark Open | Tage Madsen | Chan Kon Leong Tonny Ahm |
15–9, 12–15, 2–15 | Runner-up |
| 1950 | Denmark Open | Arve Lossmann | Børge Frederiksen Tonny Ahm |
15–9, 14–18, 4–15 | Runner-up |
| 1951 | All England Open | Arve Lossmann | Poul Holm Tonny Ahm |
15–8, 2–15, 4–15 | Runner-up |
| 1951 | Denmark Open | Arve Lossmann | Ib Olesen Aase Svendsen |
10–15, 17–15, 15–2 | Winner |
| 1955 | All England Open | Finn Kobberø | David Choong June White |
15–7, 15–13 | Winner |
| 1956 | Swedish Open | Poul-Erik Nielsen | Jørgen Hammergaard Hansen Anni Hammergaard Hansen |
15–4, 11–15, 10–15 | Runner-up |
| 1957 | All England Open | Finn Kobberø | Jørgen Hammergaard Hansen Anni Hammergaard Hansen |
15–3, 15–6 | Winner |
| 1958 | Swedish Open | Palle Granlund | Jørgen Hammergaard Hansen Anni Hammergaard Hansen |
18–14, 14–17, 11–15 | Runner-up |
| 1959 | All England Open | Jørgen Hammergaard Hansen | Poul-Erik Nielsen Inge Birgit Hansen |
17–14, 7–15, 3–15 | Runner-up |
| 1960 | All England Open | Finn Kobberø | Poul-Erik Nielsen Inge Birgit Hansen |
15–7, 15–2 | Winner |
| 1961 | All England Open | Finn Kobberø | Tony Jordan June Timperley |
15–12, 15–5 | Winner |
| 1963 | German Open | Poul-Erik Nielsen | Ferry Sonneville Yvonne Theresia Sonneville |
15–4, 17–14 | Winner |
| 1964 | German Open | Knud Aage Nielsen | Finn Kobberø Bente Flindt |
9–15, 10–15 | Runner-up |
References
- ^ Scheele, H. A. E., ed. (August 1976). "Letters to the editor" (PDF). World Badminton (26 ed.). p. 19. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
- ^ "Kirsten Thorndahl". Badminton Denmark.
- ^ "Times Archives". Oxfordshire Libraries.
- ^ a b Dabelsteen, Per (11 March 2025). "En badmintondronning, der uddelte lussing - Badmintonmuseet" [A badminton queen who handed out slaps]. badmintonmuseet.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 18 August 2025.