Wei Yaxin
Wei Yaxin is a Chinese badminton player. Partnering Jiang Zhenbang, she 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. Wei was also part of the Chinese national team that claimed the Sudirman Cup in 2025.
Background
Wei was born on 18 April 2000 in Changsha, Hunan, China. She started playing badminton at the age of seven when her father took her to a court for the first time. She quickly developed an interest and started formal training a year later at a sports school. Despite being one of the youngest players, she progressed quickly and reached the Hunan provincial team’s standard within two years. However, at age nine, she was initially rejected for being too young. She first played for the Changsha badminton team and officially joined the Hunan provincial team in 2013.Career
2017–2018: Junior career
In 2017, Wei competed in several international tournaments, including the Korea Junior International, where she was the U-19 girls' singles runner-up. She began the 2018 season as the finalist in the girls' singles event at the Dutch Junior Grand Prix. Apart from that, she won medals in various other international events as well, including bronze medals at the 2018 [Badminton Asia Junior Championships – Girls' singles|Asian] and the 2018 [BWF World Junior Championships – Girls' singles|World Junior Championships].2019
Wei, after being promoted from the reserve list, became the champion at the Polish Open in March by defeating Germany's Yvonne Li in three games. However, she was unable to make deeper runs in the tournaments she entered later in the year.2022
In October, she returned to international competition following the pandemic, now focusing on mixed doubles with Jiang Zhenbang. 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 captured their maiden title at the Indonesia Masters Super 100|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 wrapped up the season with a runner-up result at the Malaysia International.2023
2023 was a breakthrough year for Wei and Jiang. 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. Wei was also part of China's team that won the 2023 Asia Mixed Team Championships.Following this, she and Jiang won the Ruichang China Masters and then earned their first BWF World Tour title at the Swiss Open (badminton)|Swiss Open], defeating Malaysians Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Jemie Lai 21–17, 19–21, 21–17 in the final. They also captured the [2023 Badminton Asia Championships|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 (badminton)|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. In September, Wei competed with Guo Xinwa as a scratch pair to win the Hong Kong Open (badminton)|Hong Kong Open].
She and Jiang then fell short in the final of Arctic Open before clinching their first Super 750 title at the French Open (badminton)|French Open] by beating veterans Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet in three games. They also secured another runner-up finish at the Korea Masters. At the BWF Awards in December, Wei and Jiang were named Most Improved Player of the Year, in recognition of their rapid rise in the world rankings.
2024
Wei and Jiang began the year by reaching the semi-finals of the Malaysia Open (badminton)|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 strong run of 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 (badminton)|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, they 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 2024 [BWF World Tour Finals|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, Wei and Jiang claimed the title, improving on their runner-up finish from the previous season. She also began a short partnership with Feng Yanzhe at the All England Open, where they reached the final before losing to compatriots Guo Xinwa and Chen Fanghui. On 18 March, Wei and Jiang rose to world number 1 for the first time. That same week, she and Feng captured the Swiss Open.Returning to her regular partnership with Jiang, Wei secured a second consecutive bronze medal at the 2025 Asian Championships and earned her first Sudirman Cup medal after contributing to China's triumph at the 2025 Sudirman Cup. She and Jiang 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 (badminton)|China Open] the following week. Seeded second at the 2025 [BWF 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, Wei and Jiang 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
|
gold1