Jiang Zhenbang
Jiang Zhenbang is a Chinese badminton player. Partnering Wei Yaxin, he has won medals at the World Championships and Asian Championships, and the pair attained the world No. 1 ranking for the first time on 18 March 2025. Jiang was also part of the Chinese national team that claimed the Sudirman Cup in 2025.
Early life and background
Jiang was born on 28 May 2001 in Guilin, Guangxi, China. As a child, he showed an interest in various sports, particularly football, influenced by his father, Jiang Neng, a former player for the local police football team. In 2007, he joined a local badminton club under coaches Liu Zhongxing and Hu Ning. After witnessing Lin Dan’s victory at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Jiang's father encouraged him to focus solely on badminton, to which he agreed. Jiang's mother, Peng Juan, even left her job to support his training.In 2009, while participating in a national junior badminton tournament in Guilin, Jiang’s performance caught the attention of Cheng Yan, the head coach of the Shanghai Children's Sports School badminton team. Later that year, at nine years old, Jiang moved to Shanghai and joined the Huangpu badminton team under coach Yang Ting. Supported by local sports authorities, he enrolled at Ruijin Erlu Primary School and lived in an athlete dormitory. At 11, he was selected for the Shanghai Sports School’s intensive training program. In 2014, he joined the Shanghai badminton team.
Career
2018–2021: Junior career
In 2018, Jiang earned a place on China’s national second team and began competing in junior international tournaments in both boys' and mixed doubles. The following year, he achieved several solid results, including bronze medals in the mixed doubles event at the Asian and the World Junior Championships. In 2021, he advanced to the first team, becoming the first male player from Guilin to do so, and specialized in mixed doubles.2022
In October, Jiang returned to international competition after the pandemic, forming a new partnership with Wei Yaxin. At their first tournament together, the Indonesia International in Malang, they finished as runners-up to Dejan Ferdinansyah and Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja. A week later, the pair secured their maiden title at the Indonesia Masters Super 100, defeating compatriots Cheng Xing and Chen Fanghui in straight games. They continued their momentum in November by winning the Vietnam International and concluded the season with a runner-up finish at the Malaysia International.2023
2023 was a breakthrough year for Jiang and Wei. They started the season by reaching the final of the Indonesia Masters as qualifiers, where they placed second to teammates Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping. Jiang was also part of China's team that won the 2023 Asia Mixed Team Championships.Following this, he and Wei won the Ruichang China Masters and then earned their first BWF World Tour title at the Swiss Open, edging Malaysians Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Jemie Lai 21–17, 19–21, 21–17 in the final. They also captured the 2023 Asian Championships crown after overcoming seniors Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong in two straight games.
In the second half of the year, the pair were runners-up at the Korea Open and went on to take a bronze medal on their World Championships debut, where they fell to Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong in the semi-finals. They also fell short in the final of Arctic Open.
The duo then secured their first Super 750 title at the French Open by beating veterans Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet in three games and added another runner-up finish at the Korea Masters. At the BWF Awards in December, Jiang and Wei were named Most Improved Player of the Year, in recognition of their rapid rise in the world rankings.
2024
Jiang and Wei began the year by reaching the semi-finals of the Malaysia Open, before placing second at the India Open to former world champions Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai. A few months later, they were stopped in the last four of the 2024 Asian Championships and settled for bronze.The pair then produced a string of strong results, triumphing against Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong 21–11, 21–14 to claim their first Super 1000 crown at the Indonesia Open, followed by another title at the Australian Open the next week. They also won the Japan Open in August and captured their fourth title in five tournaments played at the Hong Kong Open.
In the following months, he and Wei finished as runners-up in consecutive finals at the Arctic Open and Denmark Open, both to Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping. The duo also made their debut at the World Tour Finals, where they reached the semi-finals before falling to Olympic and eventual champions Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong.
2025
At the India Open, Jiang and Wei claimed the title, improving on their runner-up finish from the previous season. He also began a short partnership with Huang Dongping at the All England Open, where they reached the semi-finals, but the pair did not achieve notable results afterwards. On 18 March, he and Wei rose to world number 1 for the first time.Back with his regular partner, Jiang secured a second consecutive bronze medal at the 2025 Asian Championships and earned his first Sudirman Cup medal after contributing to China's triumph at the 2025 Sudirman Cup. He and Wei also placed second at the Malaysia Masters.
In July, the pair defended their Japan Open crown, defeating Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Supissara Paewsampran for their first title together since January, before finishing as runners-up at the China Open the following week. Seeded second at the [2025 BWF 2023 BWF World Championships|World Championships – Mixed doubles|2025 World Championships], they advanced to the final but lost 15–21, 14–21 to Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei, settling for silver.
Later in the season, Jiang and Wei reached the Korea Open final before finishing second. They went on to win the Arctic Open in October, followed by another final appearance at the Denmark Open the following week. At the year-end World Tour Finals, they finished as runners-up to Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping, bringing their head-to-head record against Feng and Huang to 3–14.
Achievements
World Championships
Mixed doubles| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark |  Asian ChampionshipsMixed doubles
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