Tang Xianhu

Tang Xianhu (; ; born 13 March 1942) is a Indonesia-born Chinese former badminton player and coach. In the early days of his career, Tang was unable to participate in international competitions due to political factors, but he defeated the world's top players many times during overseas visits and exchanges, and was known as the "Uncrowned King" in badminton. He won the Asian Games men's team gold in 1974 and mixed doubles gold in 1978. After retiring, he started coaching in China and Indonesia. Many of the players he coached had won the World Championships and/or Olympic gold medals such as Lin Ying, Wu Dixi, Li Lingwei, Han Aiping, Ji Xinpeng, Xia Xuanze, Sun Jun, Lin Dan, Cai Yun, Fu Haifeng, Alan Budikusuma and Hendrawan. In 2002, he was inducted into the Badminton Hall of Fame. Early life Tang was born of Chinese descent in Kotabumi, Lampung Province, Dutch East Indies, on 13 March 1942. He is the third of four children in the family. He started playing badminton with his family when he was eight years old. Due to his father's work, he had to move to Bandar Lampung and then Jakarta when he was growing up. He continued to play badminton and became one of Indonesia’s top junior players in the 1950s. He was later recommended to Wang Wenjiao who was recruiting members for the Fujian badminton team in China at the time. Due to the outbreak of the anti-Chinese movement in Indonesia, Tang then decided to go to China in 1961 after his partner and rival, Hou Jiachang from Surabaya, to continue his studies while playing badminton. Career As Athlete As the People's Republic of China had not yet joined the United Nations in the 1960s. The International Badminton Federation (IBF) only recognises the membership of the Chinese Taipei Badminton Association, so Tang and others cannot represent China in international competitions.