The countdown is on for the TotalEnergies BWF World Championships 2025, set to take place in two months at the Adidas Arena—one year after it hosted the badminton events at the Paris Olympic Games.
France, a country that has long lingered on the fringes of elite badminton, now arrives with legitimate medal hopes across multiple categories. Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue made history recently by winning France’s first ever HSBC BWF World Tour Super 1000 title in Indonesia. Rising star Alex Lanier, ranked world No.8 and a European champion, adds firepower, as do the Popov brothers, Christo and Toma Junior, who are strong contenders in both singles and doubles.
Beyond these headline names, France’s lineup also includes Leonice Huet and Anna Tatranova in women’s singles, Eloi Adam and Leo Rossi in men’s doubles, Tea Margueritte/Flavie Vallet and Margot Lambert/Camille Pognante in women’s doubles, and Julien Maio/Lea Palermo in mixed doubles.
This tournament will feel like a continuation of Paris 2024, not just in location but in the lineup. Many players who starred on the Olympic stage will return, rekindling memories for fans and athletes alike. Olympic gold medallist An Se Young has only grown stronger since her breakthrough, winning seven of the ten tournaments she’s entered over the past year. She enters as a clear favourite to retain her World Championships title.
Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn, the defending champion and Olympic silver medallist, has also had a superb run this season, claiming three consecutive titles. Meanwhile, Olympic gold winner Viktor Axelsen makes a comeback from back surgery, and his progress will be closely followed.
While several top names have retired since the Olympics – including Lee Yang, Zheng Si Wei, Huang Ya Qiong, and He Bing Jiao – the competitive landscape remains wide open. With five major World Tour events still to play before the World Championships, including the YONEX US Open, YONEX Canada Open, DAIHATSU Japan Open, VICTOR China Open, and the SANDS CHINA Ltd Macau Open, plenty can still change.
As excitement builds for the 29th edition of the World Championships, one thing is certain: France has never looked stronger, and Paris 2025 promises to be one of the most compelling chapters yet.
