Xiong Guobao

Xiong Guobao is a former elite level badminton player from China who won numerous international singles titles in the late 1980s. Noted for his solid, consistent play, Xiong rarely suffered lopsided defeats. His titles included the United States (1984), Japan (1987), Hong Kong (1987), Malaysian (1988, 1989), Thailand (1988), French (1989), Swedish (1988), and Indonesian (1989) Opens. He also won the (now defunct) season ending World Badminton Grand Prix tourney in 1987 and in 1989. Along with fellow singles stars Yang Yang and Zhao Jianhua, Xiong helped China's Thomas Cup (men's international) teams capture consecutive world titles in 1986, 1988, and 1990. His results in IBF World Championships were somewhat disappointing, losing quarterfinal matches to Icuk Sugiarto and Eddy Kurniawan respectively in the 1987 and 1989 editions of the tourney.