Zhang Jun (; born November 26, 1977, in Suzhou, Jiangsu) is a former male badminton player from the People's Republic of China. Following his retirement as an international player, he was a coach with the Chinese national team, and the chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association.
Career As a doubles specialist, the solidly built Zhang Jun won several international men's doubles titles with compatriot Zhang Wei including the Swiss (1998), China (2001), and Thailand (2005) Opens. However, the majority of his titles, and the most prestigious ones, came in mixed doubles when he teamed up with the formidable Gao Ling. These included consecutive gold medals at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games, earned by surviving a number of very close matches, particularly in 2000 when they were on the verge of elimination in the semifinals. In a similar fashion, Zhang and Gao captured the 2001 IBF World Championships by squeezing past the brilliant South Korean duo Kim Dong-moon and Ra Kyung-min 17–16 in the third game. Zhang's other titles with Gao include three victories (2001, 2003, and 2006) at the prestigious All-England Championships; the Badminton Asia Championships in 2002; the China Masters in 2005; and the China (2002, 2003), Japan (2003), Indonesia (2004), Malaysia (2004, 2006), Thailand (2005), Singapore (2005), and German (2006) Opens.
Zhang had the honor of being an Olympic torch carrier at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Games.
After retirement, Zhang Jun coached the Chinese national badminton team. He was promoted to head coach of the national badminton doubles team in 2017, before being selected as vice chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association (CBA) in 2018.
On January 28, 2019, Zhang Jun was elected as the chairman of Chinese Badminton Association.
Zhang Jun, as the chairman of the Chinese Badminton Association, competed with Khunying Patama, his counterpart from the Badminton Association of Thailand and Anton Aditya Subowo, president of Badminton Asia, for the position of BWF deputy president but lost; Patama was elected deputy president in May 2019, during the Sudirman Cup tournament in Nanning, China.
Investigation In April 2026, it was reported that Zhang, who had been missing for at least 10 days, had been was put under investigation by disciplinary authorities. On 29 April, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission announced that Zhang was being investigated for alleged "serious violations of discipline and laws".
Personal life Zhang Jun married synchronised swimmer Hu Ni in 2006. Their son was born in 2009. (Zhang Jun's former doubles partner Cai Yun, whom he later also coached, married Hu Ni's teammate Wang Na in 2010.)
Achievements Olympic Games Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2000 The Dome,Sydney, Australia Gao Ling Trikus Haryanto Minarti Timur 1–15, 15–13, 15–11 Gold 2004 Goudi Olympic Hall,Athens, Greece Gao Ling Nathan Robertson Gail Emms 15–1, 12–15, 15–12 Gold
World Championships Men's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1999 Brøndby Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark Zhang Wei Ha Tae-kwon Kim Dong-moon 6–15, 15–17 Bronze
Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 2003 National Indoor Arena,Birmingham, England Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 7–15, 8–15 Silver 2001 Palacio de Deportes de San Pablo,Seville, Spain Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 15–10, 12–15, 17–16 Gold
Asian Games Mixed Doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1998 Thammasat Gymnasium 2,Bangkok, Thailand Qin Yiyuan Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 3–15, 6–15 Bronze
Asian Championships Men's doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1998 Bangkok, Thailand Zhang Wei Ha Tae-kwon Kang Kyung-jin 15–12, 11–15, 13–15 Silver1999Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Zhang Wei Ha Tae-kwon Kim Dong-moon 6–15, 4–15 Silver
Mixed doubles Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result 1997 Bangkok, Thailand Liu Lu Yang Ming Qian Hong 15–12, 17–16 Gold 2002 Bangkok, Thailand Gao Ling Khunakorn Sudhisodhi Saralee Thungthongkam 11–7, 11–8 Gold
IBF World Grand Prix (16 titles, 11 runners-up) The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) since 1983.
Men's doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 1998 Swedish Open Yang Ming Candra Wijaya Tony Gunawan 3–15, 6–15 Runner-Up 1998 Swiss Open Zhang Wei Liu Yong Yu Jinhao 17–15, 15–7 Winner 2000Thailand Open Zhang Wei Sigit Budiarto Halim Haryanto 15–5, 15–10 Winner 2001China Open Zhang Wei Chen Qiqiu Liu Yong 7–1, 4–7, 8–6 4–7, 7–5 Winner
Mixed doubles Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result 2006 Macau Open Gao Ling Thomas Laybourn Kamilla Rytter Juhl 19–21, 20–22 Runner-up 2006 Malaysia Open Gao Ling Jonas Rasmussen Britta Andersen 19–21, 21–14, 21–15 Winner 2006 China Masters Gao Ling Xie Zhongbo Zhang Yawen 16–21, 21–10, 20–22 Runner-up 2006 All England Open Gao Ling Nathan Robertson Gail Emms 12–15, 17–15, 15–1 Winner 2006 German Open Gao Ling Xie Zhongbo Zhang Yawen 15–11, 15–12 Winner 2005 China Masters Gao Ling Hendri Kurniawan Saputra Li Yujia 15–7, 15–13 Winner 2005 Singapore Open Gao Ling Sudket Prapakamol Saralee Thungthongkam 10–15, 15–7, 15–5 Winner 2004 Indonesia Open Gao Ling Robert Blair Natalie Munt 15–9, 15–9 Winner 2004 Malaysia Open Gao Ling Kim Yong-hyun Lee Hyo-jung 15–2, 15–11 Winner 2004 Swiss Open Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 2–15, 8–15 Runner-up 2003 China Open Gao Ling Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting 15–13, 15–6 Winner 2003 Hong Kong Open Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 7–15, 10–15 Runner-up 2003 German Open Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 12–15, 15–11, 8–15 Runner-up 2003 Indonesia Open Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 15–10, 11–15, 6–15 Runner-up 2003 Japan Open Gao Ling Jens Eriksen Mette Schjoldager 9–11, 11–8, 11–9 Winner 2003 All England Open Gao Ling Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting 11–6, 11–7 Winner 2002 China Open Gao Ling Chen Qiqiu Zhao Tingting 11–4, 11–4 Winner 2001 All England Open Gao Ling Michael Søgaard Rikke Olsen 10–15, 15–8, 15–9 Winner 2001 Korea Open Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 8–15, 11–15 Runner-up 2000 Thailand Open Gao Ling Simon Archer Joanne Goode 15–13, 15–12 Winner 2000 Swiss Open Gao Ling Kim Dong-moon Ra Kyung-min 8–15, 9–15 Runner-up 1999 China Open Gao Ling Liu Yong Ge Fei 8–15, 5–15 Runner-up 1999 Denmark Open Gao Ling Liu Yong Ge Fei 12–15, 14–17 Runner-up
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