Carolina Marin

Carolina Marin was born on June 15, 1993, in Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. In her early childhood, Carolina Marín held a deep fascination for Flamenco dancing. A friend’s introduction to badminton sparked an interest so deep that she decided to set aside her dancing and dedicate herself entirely to the sport. From the age of eight, she began her journey in badminton at the IES La Orden in Huelva.

She often reflects on the significant sacrifice she had to make at such a young age to pursue her passion for the sport. She started a new journey to Madrid, leaving the comfort of her hometown and the warmth of her family. Marin immersed herself in rigorous training at the National Centre and shaped her skills to become the celebrated badminton player she is today.

In 2009, Carolina Marin became the first Spanish badminton player to secure a silver medal at the European Junior Championships. In the same year, she went on to clinch gold at the European U-17 Junior Championships. In 2011, she, along with her partner Beatriz Corrales, achieved a mark in Spanish badminton history by becoming the first Spanish representatives to reach the finals at the European Junior Championships held in Vantaa, Finland. Marín then emerged victorious with the gold medal. She further showcased her skills at the World Junior Championships in Taipei, advancing to the semi-finals. However, she fell short to Indonesia’s Elisabeth Purwaningtyas and had to settle for the bronze medal.

In 2013, Carolina Marin made a notable achievement as the inaugural Spanish badminton player to clinch a Grand Prix Gold title, owing to her victory at the London Grand Prix Gold. Her triumphs continued into 2014, on August 31st, when she defeated China’s Li Xuerui at the World Championships final. This victory marked her as the first Spaniard and the third European female player to secure a World Championship title, joining the ranks of Lene Køppen (1977) and Camilla Martin (1999). At just 21, she was the youngest European to ever clinch the World Championships.

The year 2015 was particularly stellar for her. She won the All England Open, which was her first Superseries Premier title as she defeated Saina Nehwal with a scorecard of 16–21, 21–14, 21–7. This victory elevated her to the 4th position in the world rankings, and for the first time, she secured the number 1 spot in the Super Series standing. On April 5th, she seized her second consecutive Super Series Premier title at the 2015 Malaysia Open and overcame Olympic champion Li Xuerui for the second time with a score of 19–21, 21–19, 21–17. Later in August, she successfully defended her World Championship title by defeating Saina Nehwal with scores of 21–16, 21–19.

She won the other Super Series titles, including the Australian Open, French Open, and Hong Kong Open in 2015. In the same year, she proudly represented Spain at the Rio Olympics and entered as the top seed. She clinched a gold medal by beating India’s PV Sindhu in the women’s singles final with scores of 19–21, 21–12, 21–15. This achievement positioned her as the first non-Asian to win the Olympic badminton women’s singles gold medal.

On April 29, 2018, she won her fourth consecutive European Championships title on home ground in Huelva, Spain, defeating Evgeniya Kosetskaya in the final by 21–15, 21–7. In August, she once again won at the World Championships by overcoming PV Sindhu of India in straight sets of 21–19, 21–10. This win etched her name in history as the first female player to win three World Championships titles.

Despite an injury forcing her to take an eight-month hiatus, she made a triumphant return in September by winning the China Open as she defeated Tai Tzu-Ying in the finals with scores of 14–21, 21–17, 21–18. The following year, in 2021, she commenced the year on a high note by winning the Thailand Open Super 1000 event and defeated the then world no. 1 Tai Tzu-ying in two straight games. She went on to make history as the first player ever to win five consecutive titles at the European Championships, defeating young Danish player Line Christophersen in the final. In 2022, she again claimed the title becoming the European champion for the sixth-time.