Ayaka Takahashi

Ayaka Takahashi (高橋 礼華, Takahashi Ayaka, born 19 April 1990) is a retired Japanese badminton player who affiliated with Unisys badminton team. She is an Olympic Games gold medalist, two times Asian Champions, two times Asian Games silver medalists, and World Championships bronze medalist.[3]

Ayaka Takahashi
Takahashi at the 2013 French Super Series
Personal information
Country	Japan
Born	19 April 1990 Kashihara, Nara, Japan
Height	1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)
Retired	31 August 2020[1]
Handedness	Right
Women's doubles
Highest ranking	1 (20 October 2014)
Current ranking	7 (17 March 2020[2])
Medal record Women's badminton Representing  Japan Olympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro Women's doubles World Championships 2017 Glasgow Women's doubles Sudirman Cup 2015 Donggguan Mixed team 2019 Nanning Mixed team 2017 Gold Coast Mixed team Uber Cup 2018 Bangkok Women's team 2014 New Delhi Women's team 2012 Wuhan Women's team 2016 Kunshan Women's team Asian Games 2018 Jakarta–Palembang Women's team 2014 Incheon Women's doubles 2018 Jakarta–Palembang Women's doubles 2014 Incheon Women's team Asian Championships 2016 Wuhan Women's doubles 2017 Wuhan Women's doubles 2018 Wuhan Women's doubles 2015 Wuhan Women's doubles Asia Mixed Team Championships 2017 Ho Chi Minh Mixed team Asia Team Championships 2018 Alor Setar Women's team 2016 Hyderabad Women's team
BWF profile

Played for the Unisys team with her regular partner Misaki Matsutomo in the women's doubles, she won five National Championships titles.[4] In the international event, Takahashi and Matsutomo were ranked as world number 1 in BWF World Ranking in October 2014.[5] They had won numerous international titles, including the year-end tournament finals in 2014 and 2018; the historical tournament All England Open in 2016; Olympic Games in 2016; and also Asian Championships in 2016 and 2017.[3][6] The duo were awarded as Female Player of the Year by the Badminton World Federation in 2016.[7]

Takahashi also a member of the Japanese winning team at the Asia Mixed Team Championships in 2017; the women's team events of the Asia Team Championships, Asian Games, and the Uber Cup in 2018.[6][8]

Career

In 2016, Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo won the women's doubles gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, became the first ever Japan's to win an Olympic badminton gold medal.[9] She and her women's doubles partner Matsutomo also honored with the Female Player of the Year award.[7] They are playing together for more than ten years, ever since they were schoolmates. Takahashi and Matsutomo became the first pair from outside China to win the women's Olympic doubles title since the 1996 Atlanta Games, giving Japan its second medal in the event after Mizuki Fujii and Reika Kakiiwa took silver at the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Takahashi announced her retirement in an online conference on 19 August 2020, and officially left the national and Unisys team at the end of August.[1][10]

Personal life

Takahashi is the older sister of Sayaka Takahashi who is also a badminton player in the singles event.

Achievements

Olympic Games

Women's doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2016	Riocentro - Pavilion 4, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	Misaki Matsutomo	Christinna Pedersen Kamilla Rytter Juhl	18–21, 21–9, 21–19	Gold

BWF World Championships

Women's doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2017	Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Scotland	Misaki Matsutomo	Chen Qingchen Jia Yifan	17–21, 15–21	Bronze

Asian Games

Women's doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2014	Gyeyang Gymnasium, Incheon, South Korea	Misaki Matsutomo	Nitya Krishinda Maheswari Greysia Polii	15–21, 9–21	Silver
2018	Istora Gelora Bung Karno, Jakarta, Indonesia	Misaki Matsutomo	Chen Qingchen Jia Yifan	20–22, 20–22	Silver

Asian Championships

Women's doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2015	Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium, Wuhan, China	Misaki Matsutomo	Wang Xiaoli Yu Yang	18–21, 21–18, 15–21	Bronze
2016	Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium, Wuhan, China	Misaki Matsutomo	Naoko Fukuman Kurumi Yonao	21–13, 21–15	Gold
2017	Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium, Wuhan, China	Misaki Matsutomo	Kim Hye-rin Yoo Hae-won	21–19, 16–21, 21–10	Gold
2018	Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium, Wuhan, China	Misaki Matsutomo	Yuki Fukushima Sayaka Hirota	18–21, 21–18, 15–21	Silver

BWF World Tour (6 titles, 6 runners-up)

The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[11] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tours are divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.[12]

Women's doubles

Year	Tournament	Level	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2018	Indonesia Masters	Super 500	Misaki Matsutomo	Greysia Polii Apriyani Rahayu	21–17, 21–12	Winner
2018	Malaysia Open	Super 750	Misaki Matsutomo	Chen Qingchen Jia Yifan	21–12, 21–12	Winner
2018	Thailand Open	Super 500	Misaki Matsutomo	Greysia Polii Apriyani Rahayu	13–21, 10–21	Runner-up
2018	China Open	Super 1000	Misaki Matsutomo	Mayu Matsumoto Wakana Nagahara	21–16, 21–12	Winner
2018	Korea Open	Super 500	Misaki Matsutomo	Yuki Fukushima Sayaka Hirota	21–11, 21–18	Winner
2018	BWF World Tour Finals	World Tour Finals	Misaki Matsutomo	Lee So-hee Shin Seung-chan	21–12, 22–20	Winner
2019	Indonesia Masters	Super 500	Misaki Matsutomo	Kim So-yeong Kong Hee-yong	21–19, 21–15	Winner
2019	German Open	Super 300	Misaki Matsutomo	Du Yue Li Yinhui	20–22, 15–21	Runner-up
2019	New Zealand Open	Super 300	Misaki Matsutomo	Kim So-yeong Kong Hee-yong	15–21, 18–21	Runner-up
2019	Indonesia Open	Super 1000	Misaki Matsutomo	Yuki Fukushima Sayaka Hirota	16–21, 18–21	Runner-up
2019	China Open	Super 1000	Misaki Matsutomo	Chen Qingchen Jia Yifan	14–21, 18–21	Runner-up
2019	Korea Masters	Super 300	Misaki Matsutomo	Nami Matsuyama Chiharu Shida	21–15, 17–21, 18–21	Runner-up

BWF Superseries (9 titles, 13 runners-up)

The BWF Superseries, which was launched on 14 December 2006 and implemented in 2007,[13] is a series of elite badminton tournaments, sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). BWF Superseries levels are Superseries and Superseries Premier. A season of Superseries consists of twelve tournaments around the world that have been introduced since 2011.[14] Successful players are invited to the Superseries Finals, which are held at the end of each year.

Women's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2012	Denmark Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Ma Jin Tang Jinhua	8–21, 12–21	Runner-up
2013	Malaysia Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Bao Yixin Tian Qing	16–21, 14–21	Runner-up
2013	Singapore Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Tian Qing Zhao Yunlei	19–21, 16–21	Runner-up
2014	Malaysia Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Bao Yixin Tang Jinhua	19–21, 21–14, 13–21	Runner-up
2014	Japan Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Reika Kakiiwa Miyuki Maeda	21–13, 21–17	Winner
2014	Australian Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Tian Qing Zhao Yunlei	15–21, 9–21	Runner-up
2014	Denmark Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Wang Xiaoli Yu Yang	14–21, 14–21	Runner-up
2014	Hong Kong Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Tian Qing Zhao Yunlei	13–21, 13–21	Runner-up
2014	Dubai World Superseries Finals	Misaki Matsutomo	Tian Qing Zhao Yunlei	21–17, 21–14	Winner
2015	India Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Luo Ying Luo Yu	21–19, 21–19	Winner
2015	Singapore Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Ou Dongni Yu Xiaohan	17–21, 16–21	Runner-up
2015	China Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Tang Yuanting Yu Yang	21–18, 13–21, 12–21	Runner-up
2016	All England Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Tang Yuanting Yu Yang	21–10, 21–12	Winner
2016	India Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Naoko Fukuman Kurumi Yonao	21–18, 21–18	Winner
2016	Singapore Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Nitya Krishinda Maheswari Greysia Polii	Walkover	Runner-up
2016	Indonesia Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Tang Yuanting Yu Yang	21–15, 8–21, 21–15	Winner
2016	Japan Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Christinna Pedersen Kamilla Rytter Juhl	21–19, 18–21, 12–21	Runner-up
2016	Denmark Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Jung Kyung-eun Shin Seung-chan	19–21, 21–11, 21–16	Winner
2016	Dubai World Superseries Finals	Misaki Matsutomo	Chen Qingchen Jia Yifan	15–21, 21–13, 17–21	Runner-up
2017	Singapore Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Christinna Pedersen Kamilla Rytter Juhl	18–21, 21–14, 15–21	Runner-up
2017	Australian Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Christinna Pedersen Kamilla Rytter Juhl	21–10, 21–13	Winner
2017	Japan Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Kim Ha-na Kong Hee-yong	21–18, 21–16	Winner

  BWF Superseries Finals tournament

  BWF Superseries Premier tournament

  BWF Superseries tournament

BWF Grand Prix (7 titles, 1 runner-up)

The BWF Grand Prix had two levels, the BWF Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It was a series of badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) which was held from 2007 to 2017.

Women's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2009	India Grand Prix	Misaki Matsutomo	Nadya Melati Devi Tika Permatasari	21–14, 15–21, 21–15	Winner
2011	Russian Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Valeri Sorokina Nina Vislova	20–22, 18–21	Runner-up
2012	U.S. Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Valeri Sorokina Nina Vislova	21–19, 21–17	Winner
2012	Canada Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Yuriko Miki Koharu Yonemoto	21–15, 15–21, 21–12	Winner
2012	Indonesia Grand Prix Gold	Misaki Matsutomo	Eom Hye-won Jang Ye-na	21–12, 12–21, 21–13	Winner
2014	German Open	Misaki Matsutomo	Jung Kyung-eun Kim Ha-na	23–21, 24–22	Winner
2016	Malaysia Masters	Misaki Matsutomo	Tang Yuanting Yu Yang	21–18, 22–20	Winner

Mixed doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2012	Canada Open	Ryota Taohata	Takeshi Kamura Koharu Yonemoto	21–14, 21–16	Winner

  BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament

  BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series (5 titles, 2 runners-up)

Women's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
2008	Waikato International	Sayaka Sato	21–11, 17–21, 28–26	Winner

Women's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
2008	Smiling Fish International	Koharu Yonemoto	Megumi Taruno Oku Yukina	15–21, 20–22	Runner-up
2008	Waikato International	Koharu Yonemoto	Renee Flavell Rachel Hindley	21–18, 21–19	Winner
2008	North Shore City International	Koharu Yonemoto	Renee Flavell Rachel Hindley	21–9, 21–15	Winner
2009	Osaka International	Misaki Matsutomo	Kaori Mori Aya Wakisaka	21–16, 16–21, 24–22	Winner
2009	Belgian International	Misaki Matsutomo	Emma Mason Samantha Ward	21–8, 18–21, 21–13	Winner
2010	Osaka International	Misaki Matsutomo	Mizuki Fujii Reika Kakiiwa	19–21, 16–21	Runner-up

  BWF International Challenge tournament

  BWF International Series tournament

Performance timeline

National team

• Senior level

Team events	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
Asia Team Championships	N/A				Silver	N/A	Gold	N/A	A
Asia Mixed Team Championships	N/A					Gold	N/A	A	N/A
Asian Games	N/A		Bronze	N/A			Gold	N/A
Uber Cup	Bronze	N/A	Silver	N/A	Bronze	N/A	Gold	N/A
Sudirman Cup	N/A	QF	N/A	Silver	N/A	Bronze	N/A	Silver	N/A

Individual competitions

• Senior level

Events	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Asian Championships	R1	A	R1	A	Bronze	Gold	Gold	Silver	R1
Asian Games	N/A			Silver	N/A			Silver	N/A
World Championships	R3	N/A	R2	R3	R3	N/A	Bronze	R3	QF
Olympic Games	N/A	A	N/A			Gold	N/A

Tournament	2018	2019	2020	Best
BWF World Tour
Malaysia Masters	QF	SF	QF	W (2016)
Indonesian Masters	W	W	SF	W (2012, 2018, 2019)
German Open	w/d	F	N/A	W (2014)
All England Open	QF	R1	SF	W (2016)
Singapore Open	A	R2	Ret	F (2013, 2015, 2016, 2017)
Australian Open	A	SF		W (2017)
Korea Open	W	QF		W (2018)
China Open	W	F		W (2018)
Japan Open	R2	SF		W (2014, 2017)
Denmark Open	R2	R1		W (2016)
French Open	QF	R2		SF (2016)
New Zealand Open	A	F		F (2019)
Fuzhou China Open	SF	R2		SF (2018)
Hong Kong Open	QF	QF	F (2017)
Indonesia Open	SF	F	W (2016)
Syed Modi International	R1	A	W (2009)
Malaysia Open	W	R2	W (2018)
Korea Masters	A	F	F (2019)
India Open	A		W (2015, 2016)
Thailand Open	F	QF	F (2018)
BWF World Tour Finals	W	DNQ	W (2014, 2018)
Year-end Ranking	2	4	1
Tournament	2018	2019	2020	Best

Tournament	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	Best
BWF Superseries
All England Open	A		R1 (WD)	R2 (WD)	R2 (WD)	R1 (WD)	SF	R1	W	R2	W (2016)
Swiss Open	A		R1 (WD) R1 (XD)	GPG							R2 (2011, 2012)
India Open	GPG			R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	QF (WD)	SF (WD)	QF	W	W	A	W (2015, 2016)
Malaysia Open	A		R1 (WD) R1 (XD)	R2 (WD)	A	F (WD)	F	R1	QF	SF	F (2013, 2014)
Singapore Open	A		R1 (WD)	R2 (WD)	R2 (WD)	F (WD)	SF	F	F	F	F (2013, 2015, 2016, 2017)
Australian Open	IS	GP/GPG					F	SF	QF	W	W (2017)
Indonesia Open	A		R1 (WD)	R1 (WD) R1 (XD)	A	QF (WD)	R2	R2	W	R1	W (2016)
Japan Open	R2 (WD)	R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	R2 (WD)	R1 (WD)	R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	SF (WD) QF (XD)	W	R2	F	W	W (2014, 2017)
China Open	A		QF (WD) R2 (XD)	QF (WD)	QF (WD)	QF (WD)	SF	F	R2	QF	F (2015)
Korea Open	A		QF (WD) R1 (XD)	R2 (WD)	A	QF (WD)	QF	w/d	A	SF	SF (2017)
Denmark Open	A		R2 (WD)	QF (WD)	F (WD)	SF (WD)	F	R2	W	R2	W (2016)
French Open	A			R1 (WD)	QF (WD)	QF (WD)	QF	R2	SF	QF	SF (2016)
China Masters	A	R1 (WS) R1 (WD)	A	R1 (WD) R2 (XD)	A	QF (WD) R1 (XD)	GPG				QF (2013)
Hong Kong Open	A			R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	QF (WD)	SF (WD)	F	QF	QF	R1	F (2017)
BWF Super Series Finals	DNQ				GS (WD)	GS (WD)	W	SF	F	DNQ	W (2014)
Year-end Ranking		172 (WS) 41 (WD) 138 (XD)	21 (WD) 70 (XD)	17 (WD) 52 (XD)	7 (WD) 119 (XD)	4 (WD) 216 (XD)	2	4	1	2	1 (WD)
Tournament	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	Best

Tournament	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	Best
BWF Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold
Malaysia Masters	A	R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	R1 (WD)	A				W	A	W (2016)
Syed Modi International	R1 (WS) W (WD)	A			N/A	A				W (2009)
German Open	A		R2 (WD) R2 (XD)	QF (WD)	SF (WD)	W	R2	SF	A	W (2014)
Swiss Open	SS		R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	R2 (WD) R1 (XD)	A					R2 (2011, 2012)
India Open	R1 (WS) R2 (WD)	A	SS							R2 (2009)
Thailand Open	R1 (WS) QF (WD)	N/A	A			N/A	A			QF (2009)
Dutch Open	A	R1 (WD)	A							R1 (2010)
Australian Open	A	QF (WD) SF (XD)	QF (WD) R2 (XD)	QF (WD) R1 (XD)	A	SS				SF (2010)
Chinese Taipei Open	R1 (WD)	A					SF	A		SF (2015)
Russian Open	A		F (WD)	A						F (2011)
U.S. Open	A		R1 (WD) R1 (XD)	W (WD) QF (XD)	A					W (2012)
Canadian Open	N/A	A		W (WD) W (XD)	A					W (2012 (WD), 2012 (WD))
Indonesian Masters	N/A	A		W (WD)	A				N/A	W (2012)
Tournament	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	Best

Record against selected opponents

Record against year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi-finalists, and Olympic quarter-finalists.[15]

Misaki Matsutomo

Players M W L Diff. Leanne Choo & Renuga Veeran 1 1 0 +1 Chen Qingchen & Jia Yifan 11 5 6 –1 Du Jing & Yu Yang 1 0 1 –1 Du Yue & Li Yinhui 10 6 4 +2 Luo Ying & Luo Yu 9 7 2 +5 Ma Jin & Tang Jinhua 4 0 4 –4 Ma Jin & Wang Xiaoli 1 0 1 –1 Tang Yuanting & Yu Yang 5 3 2 +1 Tian Qing & Zhao Yunlei 14 5 9 –4 Wang Xiaoli & Yu Yang 5 1 4 –3 Cheng Wen-hsing & Chien Yu-chin 3 0 3 –3 Christinna Pedersen & Kamilla Rytter Juhl 17 11 6 +5 Jwala Gutta & Ashwini Ponnappa 3 3 0 +3 Nitya Krishinda Maheswari & Greysia Polii 6 3 3 0 Greysia Polii & Apriyani Rahayu 12 10 2 +8 Mizuki Fujii & Reika Kakiiwa 6 2 4 –2

Players M W L Diff. Naoko Fukuman & Kurumi Yonao 11 10 1 +9 Yuki Fukushima & Sayaka Hirota 11 4 7 –3 Reika Kakiiwa & Miyuki Maeda 5 5 0 +5 Miyuki Maeda & Satoko Suetsuna 3 1 2 –1 Mayu Matsumoto & Wakana Nagahara 8 4 4 0 Shiho Tanaka & Koharu Yonemoto 8 5 3 +2 Vivian Hoo Kah Mun & Woon Khe Wei 11 11 0 +11 Chin Eei Hui & Wong Pei Tty 1 0 1 –1 Eefje Muskens & Selena Piek 6 6 0 +6 Valeria Sorokina & Nina Vislova 2 1 1 0 Chang Ye-na & Lee So-hee 4 4 0 +4 Eom Hye-won & Chang Ye-na 2 2 0 +2 Ha Jung-eun & Kim Min-jung 4 0 4 –4 Jung Kyung-eun & Shin Seung-chan 7 5 2 +3 Lee So-hee & Shin Seung-chan 13 7 6 +1

References

1. "日本ユニシス実業団バドミントン部 髙橋礼華選手の現役引退、松友美佐紀選手の現役続行のお知らせ" (PDF). www.unisys.co.jp (in Japanese). 19 August 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
2. "BWF Rankings – Women's doubles (17 March 2020)". bwfbadminton.com. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
3. "選手・スタッフ紹介: 高橋 礼華 Ayaka Takahashi". www.unisys.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 29 May 2014.
4. "「平成28年度第70回全日本総合バドミントン選手権大会」 女子ダブルス高橋礼華・松友美佐紀組 優勝！". www.unisys.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 September 2020.
5. "日本代表ナショナルチーム女子ダブルス高橋＆松友ペア 日本勢初の快挙、世界ランキング1位に！！". www.yonex.co.jp (in Japanese). 31 October 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
6. Sukumar, Dev (26 August 2020). "Genius in Action: Ayaka Takahashi". bwfbadminton.com. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
7. "Lee, Matsutomo/Takahashi Win Best Player Awards". bwfbadminton.com. Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 17 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
8. "髙橋礼華 Ayaka Takahashi". s-rights.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 September 2020.
9. "Matsutomo, Takahashi claim Japan's first-ever Olympic badminton gold". www.japantimes.co.jp. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
10. "Olympic badminton gold medalist Ayaka Takahashi retires due to lack of fire". www.japantimes.co.jp. 19 August 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
11. Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". bwfbadminton.com. Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
12. Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". bwfbadminton.com. Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
13. "BWF Launches Super Series". Badminton Australia. 15 December 2006. Archived from the original on 6 October 2007.
14. "Yonex All England Elevated To BWF Premier Super Series Event". www.ibadmintonstore.com. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
15. "Ayaka Takahashi's Profile – Head To Head". bwfbadminton.com. Retrieved 3 September 2020.

External links

• Ayaka TAKAHASHI at BWF.tournamentsoftware.com
• Ayaka TAKAHASHI at BWFbadminton.com