View Kulwut Vitidsarn, Thailand’s young badminton player ranked No. 2 in the world, is fully committed to finishing among the top 3 in men’s singles at the 20th Asian Games in Japan this September, after being eliminated in the round of 16 last time. He is scheduled to compete for his second world championship title in India in mid-August. Meanwhile, Dr. Kongsak Yodmanee, Governor of the Sports Authority of Thailand, believes Thai badminton has a chance to win 1-2 medals, despite the tough competition.
View Kulwut Vitidsarn, the world No. 2 men’s singles badminton player, is set to lead the Thai badminton team at the 2026 BWF World Championships from 17-23 August 2026 in New Delhi, India. The Thai delegation includes 19 athletes in total. Kulwut has reached the men’s singles final twice, in 2023 and 2025, and won the world title once in 2023. He will open the tournament facing Viren Nettasinghe, ranked 91st in the world from Sri Lanka.
After the world championship, Kulwut has an important duty representing Thailand at the 20th Asian Games, held from 19 September to 4 October 2026 in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The badminton events will take place from 20-29 September 2026, competing for 7 gold medals: men’s singles, men’s doubles, men’s team, women’s singles, women’s doubles, women’s team, and mixed doubles. Thailand will send 20 athletes: 10 men and 10 women.
View Kulwut shared his readiness for the 20th Asian Games, saying he aims to finish at least in the top 3 after being eliminated in the round of 16 in the previous Games in China. He is determined to perform at his best and asked Thai sports fans to support him and the entire Thai national team across all sports.
Dr. Kongsak Yodmanee, Governor of the Sports Authority of Thailand, stated that badminton at the Asian Games is akin to a world championship because top athletes from across Asia participate. The only strong nation missing is Denmark. Therefore, the competition will be quite challenging for Thai athletes.
“However, I remain confident that we have a chance to win 1-2 medals. Our highest hopes are in men’s singles, with View Kulwut Vitidsarn, and mixed doubles, with Bas Dechapol Piewsurin and Fem Supissara Paewsampran. Women’s singles will be very challenging because world-class players from South Korea, China, Japan, and Indonesia stand in the way,” Dr. Kongsak said.