Axelsen Changes Coach Ahead of Tokyo World Championships

Men’s singles world number one Viktor Axelsen will change his coach during next week’s Tokyo World Championships. Instead of being guided by Denmark’s head coach Jonathan or his father-in-law Henrik, he will receive assistance from Danish national team assistant coach, Stavanger.

Viktor Axelsen

2022 World Badminton Championships | Draw

According to Danish media reports, Axelsen, who is seeking his second World Championship title, will adopt a different approach this time. This change has attracted attention regarding its potential impact on his Tokyo competitors, including Lee Zii Jia.

Last year, under Jonathan’s guidance, Axelsen won the men’s singles gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. He told Danish media, “When Jonathan contacted me, I needed to consider it because he has always coached me at the World Championships. But I agreed with Jonathan’s point that given the past time, having Stavanger coach this World Championships makes a lot of sense.”

Reportedly, Jonathan, who has played a crucial role in Axelsen’s career since his youth, has reduced his on-court coaching duties after undergoing hip surgery last year. Although he is expected to travel to Tokyo next week, only Stavanger will coach during the matches.

The New Straits Times sought the opinion of Huang Zonghan, the singles coach director of the Malaysian Badminton Association and a friend of Jonathan, on how much impact a coach can have on a player like Axelsen.

“This is new to me. Both Stavanger and Jonathan have been with the Danish Badminton Association for a long time. Whether this new arrangement will affect Axelsen’s performance at the World Championships, I don’t know.”

“What I do know is that Axelsen is at a stage in his career where he can handle things on his own. He has proven this through his consistency, especially over the past few years. He knows exactly what he wants and is very determined.”

After spending a long period training in Dubai last year under his father-in-law Henrik, Axelsen has won the All England Open, Indonesia Masters, Indonesia Open, and Malaysia Open this year, totaling four tour titles.

Along with his victory at the European Championships, Axelsen is the biggest favorite to win the Tokyo World Championships. He will face veteran independent player Liew Daren in the first round. Other notable players in the upper half of the draw include Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, Jonatan Christie, Chou Tien-chen, Shi Yuqi, and Commonwealth Games silver medalist Ng Tze Yong.