NewsBytes
    Hindi Tamil Telugu
    More
    In the news
    Narendra Modi
    Amit Shah
    Box Office Collection
    Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
    OTT releases
    Hindi Tamil Telugu
    NewsBytes
    User Placeholder

    Hi,

    Logout

    India
    Business
    World
    Politics
    Sports
    Technology
    Entertainment
    Auto
    Lifestyle
    Inspirational
    Career
    Bengaluru
    Delhi
    Mumbai

    Download Android App

    Follow us on
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Linkedin
    Home / News / Sports News / Gopichand, the Dronacharya of Indian badminton
    Next Article
    Gopichand, the Dronacharya of Indian badminton

    Gopichand, the Dronacharya of Indian badminton

    By Vijaya
    Aug 21, 2016
    09:03 am

    What's the story

    PV Sindhu, the current Olympic silver medallist and Saina Nehwal, the 2012 bronze winner have one thing in common.

    Behind the success of these champions is a quiet yet passionate man, busy shaping the future stars of the sport, Pullela Gopichand.

    Gopichand, the primary reason behind meteoric rise in the success of Indian badminton in the past decade, single-handedly produced some world class athletes.

    Bio

    Gopichand's profile

    Pullela Gopichand was a former badminton player and the current national badminton coach of India.

    Born on 16th Nov 1973, in Andhra Pradesh's Nagandla, Gopichand made his international badminton debut in 1991.

    His sporting achievements include winning an individual bronze and silver in the team event, at the 1998 Commonwealth Games.

    Gopi's best result was winning the 2001 All England Open Badminton Championship.

    Data

    How many Indians won the All England Open?

    'All England Open Badminton Championships', one of the oldest and most prestigious tournaments, was won by the Indians just twice - once by Prakash Padukone in 1980, and then by Pullela Gopichand, both in Men's Singles.

    Turning a coach

    Donning the hat of a coach

    While injuries forced Gopichand to retire from the sport early he decided to turn a coach and took to coaching in 2004.

    Not after long, in 2006, he was appointed as the chief coach of Indian national badminton team.

    Over the years that he has been coaching, Gopichand transformed the landscape of badminton in India and prepared some of the world's top players.

    Gopi's champion-churning Academy

    Gopichand's badminton Academy

    On the 5-acre land allotted to him by Andhra Pradesh Government, Gopichand set up an international badminton academy, in Hyderabad, in 2008.

    Gopichand took many top players like Saina Nehwal under his wing.

    It was under him that Saina clinched the 2012 Olympic bronze and Parupalli Kashyap went on to reach the quarter-finals of the 2012 Olympics, a first for an Indian male shuttler.

    Awards

    Awards and Recognition

    Pullela Gopichand received many honours both as a player and a coach.

    He received the Arjuna Award in 1999, the highest sporting honour Rajiv Khel Ratna Award in 2001, and Padma Shri award in 2005.

    For his contributions to badminton as a coach, he was bestowed upon with the Dronacharya Award in 2009, and the Padma Bhushan Award in 2014.

    Information

    More players in the making

    Some of the other young rising badminton players being coached by Gopichand include the Rio Olympic quarter-finalist Kidambi Srikanth, HA Prannoy, Sai Praneeth, Saurabh Verma, etc,.

    20 Aug 2016

    Gopichand, a stern taskmaster

    Gopichand demands discipline and commitment from his students.

    This reflects in the way his Academy is maintained which doesn't have internet access and where the usage of mobile phones is restricted to Sundays alone.

    Sindhu for instance, "did not have her mobile during the last 3 months", preparing for Rio Olympics. Her strict diet deprived her of favorites like sweet curd and ice-cream.

    Facebook
    Whatsapp
    Twitter
    Linkedin
    Related News
    Latest
    India
    Saina Nehwal
    PV Sindhu

    Latest

    'Not one statement…against India': Pakistan MP slams 'coward' Shehbaz Sharif  Jammu And Kashmir
    Vijay Deverakonda is a magnificent saint in 'VD14' first look Rashmika Mandanna
    Trump hints at tariff relief for China—What's behind the shift?  China
    Metallica concert just caused a small quake!  Celebrity

    India

    Friendship day quotes by inspirational personalities United Nations (UN)
    Pakistan's Syed Sulahuddin intimidates India with a nuclear war National Investigation Agency (NIA)
    I-T raids AAP MLA Kartar Singh, recovers Rs.130 crore Delhi Police
    Mahindra Intertrade and MSTC to start Auto Shredding Joint Venture Maruti Suzuki

    Saina Nehwal

    Saina, Sindhu win in their opening matches India
    Dipa misses bronze by whisker, wins hearts Harbhajan Singh

    PV Sindhu

    Kidambi, Sindhu advance to quarterfinals, keep medal hopes alive India
    PV Sindhu shocks World's No 2, enters semi-finals! India
    Shuttler Sindhu stuns! Storms into the final India
    Indian Premier League (IPL) Celebrity Hollywood Bollywood UEFA Champions League Tennis Football Smartphones Cryptocurrency Upcoming Movies Premier League Cricket News Latest automobiles Latest Cars Upcoming Cars Latest Bikes Upcoming Tablets
    About Us Privacy Policy Terms & Conditions Contact Us Ethical Conduct Grievance Redressal News News Archive Topics Archive Download DevBytes Find Cricket Statistics
    Follow us on
    Facebook Twitter Linkedin
    All rights reserved © NewsBytes 2025