Who is HS Prannoy? All you need to know about the Indian shuttler competing at Paris Olympics 2024

Ace Indian badminton player, HS Prannoy is all set to make his debut Olympic appearance at the Paris Olympics 2024. The 32-year-old will be competing in Group K alongside Germany’s Fabian Roth and Vietnam’s Le Duo Phat in the men's singles category.

Prannoy, a veteran of the sport, is currently the highest-ranked Indian player at No. 13. He has featured in several top global competitions, also winning a men's singles bronze medal at the BWF World Championships last year.

For HS Prannoy, badminton was always a sport close to home. His father, Sunil Kumar, himself a badminton player and a retired Air Force officer, took him under his wings. The shuttler went on to join Pullela Gopichand's academy, where he began his professional training. Prannoy slowly grew into the player that he is today.

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HS Prannoy's illustrious badminton career and his many achievements

Though HS Prannoy is going to make his debut at the Summer Games aged 32, it does not take away anything from the ace shuttler’s achievements in a long and illustrious career.

His first taste of success on the world stage came with a silver medal finish at the 2010 Youth Olympics in Singapore. He then reached his first Grand Prix final at the Vietnam Open in 2014. Though he had to suffice with a silver medal there, Prannoy went on to win the Indonesia Open later that year. He then won the Swiss Open in 2016 to add to it.

In 2017, HS Prannoy won the US Open Badminton Championships. He then bagged the gold medal in the mixed team event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. At the 2018 Asian Badminton Championships, Prannoy recorded a bronze medal finish in men’s singles.

The shuttler was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2022, and helped India win the Thomas Cup gold in the same year. Leading up to the Paris 2024 Olympics, the Kerala-born shuttler is in good form having won the bronze medals at both the World Championships and the Asian Games in 2023.

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