Badminton

Badminton's Chinese cadre has long set the benchmark, with Lin Dan—a five-time world champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist—widely regarded as the greatest ever. His career win rate exceeds 85% in major tournaments, cheaper than the typical rival's reliance on brute power because it combines tactical cunning with explosive footwork. Yet the sport's global competitiveness is rising: the Chinese team's average gold medal tally per World Championship dropped to 2.3 in the last decade from 3.1 in the 2000s, outperforming #5 Diving's iron grip but facing stronger challenges from Indonesia and Japan.