Lai claims second consecutive bronze in badminton world championships
One year after Victor Lai made history by winning Canada’s first ever medal at the badminton world championships, the 21-year-old matched his 2025 result earning another bronze in New Delhi, India.
Lai came in to the the BWF World Championships as the seventh seed and had won all four of his matches in straight sets leading up to the semifinal.
His path included wins against Singapore’s Kean Yew Low (#13) in the R16 (who he also beat en route to his bronze medal in 2025), and a win against unseeded Norwegian Rasmus Gemke in the quarterfinal.
Lai matched up against the #9 seed, 2025 European champion Alex Lanier, in the semifinal
Lai jumped out to a 12-5 lead and looked to have the upper hand after taking the first set, 21-16.
He also led early in the second set, but fatigue started to set in toward the end of the set.
It was the same story in the deciding set; Lai kept it close early but Lanier proved to be the aggressor, ultimately winning 21-14.
“I knew he’s physically probably the strongest player on the Tour, so he can always keep up his speed and his power for the whole three games,” Lai told BWF media following the match. “So that’s just kudos to him, and that’s something I need to work on.”
In badminton, bronze medals are awarded to both semifinalists who do not advance to the final.
“Of course I’m really proud. I wanted a different colour medal than last year, but I’m so proud of the way I handled the pressure and the expectations. I fought through some pretty tough matches to get into the semifinals today,” he said.
Lanier will play the 10 seed, Japan’s Kodak Naraoka, in tomorrow’s final, while Lai and Tien Chen Chou of Chinese Taipei will both end the tournament with a bronze after losing in the semifinal round.
