Prakash Padukone is considered to be India’s first badminton superstar. He is the one who put India on the international map, simultaneously making the sport famous in India. He was born on 10th June 1955 in Bangalore, Karnataka. He initially entered the game because of his father who was the secretary of the Mysore Badminton Association. He lost the very first round of the Karnataka state junior championship held in 1962. This was his first official tournament but he managed to redeem himself two years later by winning the state junior title. He went on to win the Indian National junior and senior title in the year 1972. He defended his National tile for 7 consecutive years after this. He was conferred with the Arjuna Award in 1972 and the Padma Shri in the year 1982.

International Career: Highlights

• In 1978, he won a gold medal in the men’s singles event at the Commonwealth games, making him the first Indian badminton player to do so.
• In 1979, he won the Evening of Champions at the Royal Albert Hall, London but had to withdraw from the All England Open due to his foot injury.
• In 1980, he won the Danish and Swedish Open and became the first Indian to win the All England Open. In the same year he ranked as World No. 1, becoming the first Indian player to achieve this milestone.
• In 1981, he won a gold medal at the World Cup in men’s singles, this followed the bronze medal he won in the previous World Cup. This was also the year he moved to Denmark to train with the best European players.
• He won a bronze medal in the men’s team event at the 1974 and 1986 Asian games.
• In the Asian championships of 1976 and 1983, he won a bronze medal in men’s singles and silver in men’s team respectively.
• In 1983, he won a bronze medal at the World Championships in the men’s singles category.
• He bagged around 20 international medals before announcing his retirement in 1991, though was not playing since 1989.

Even after his retirement, he continued to be associated with the sport and served as the Chairman of Badminton Association of India for sometime. He was appointed as the coach of the Indian National Badminton team from 1993 to 1996.

In 1994, he set up the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA) in Bengaluru, which supported and unearthed many players including Pullela Gopichand.
In 2001, he teamed up with Geet Sethi, a former world billiards champion, to set up the ‘Olympic Gold Quest’, an organization that scouts and supports the talent for Olympic sports.