Taufik Hidayat is the only player to have scooped back to back the Olympic and world champiuonships titles . He will be the key figure for his team to clinch back the Thomas Cup that Indonesia had won back in 2002.

If there is one player that will be remember in the first years of this new century, it will definitely be Taufik Hidayat. For his talent, his two titles in the Olympics and the world championships back top back - something no singles player had done before him, but also for all the things around his career, his charisma on court, his attitude off court which makes him more like a show business figure rather than a badminton player...

And there are two sides of Taufik Hidayat, who was born 25 years ago, and whose nickname is “baby face”. One side of his personality that everybody knows, when he is on court. Always calm, sure of himself, Taufik is known to be one of the jewel of badminton for his raw talent and incredible sense of the game. Badminton just looks so easy when the Indonesian wonder plays. He has the knowledge, the speed, the vision, the mind strength. Yet, he only wins when he puts his mind to the job. When Taufik is not in the mood to win, he can play in a terrible manner, as he has shown on many occasions, bowing out of important meetings in early rounds. Yet when he has set his mind on a title, it is very likely that he will achieve what he aims for. He is just one of a kind. He is never better than when he plays in front of him home crowd. Some like to say that Taufik is simply unbeatable in his home yard of the Senayan Stadium in Jakarta, which is proven by his 5 titles in the Indonesia Open.

And there is always something unusual happening when he joins an important tournament. In 2001 World Championships, in Sevilla, he had led his semi-final against his compatriot Hendrawan before collapsing on court and being brought out of court on a stretcher. Three years later, he was crying on top of the podium of the summer Olympic Games in Athens, with a Gold medal around his neck, after an incredible run in the most prestigious event of all. And then, the next year, he was crowned once again in Anaheim, in the land of Disney world, beating the very best to achieve what had never been done before : win back to back the two most important titles in badminton. Yet Taufik has not had a smooth ride. Often speaking out against his own Federation, he had at one point decided to leave the country, in 2001 for Singapore, to follow his friend, coach and Mentor Mulyo Handoyo, who had been thanked by PBSI (Indonesia Federation). Few months later, however, Taufik was back in Indonesia to help them clinch the Thomas Cup in Guangzhou China, even if he had lost his match in the final. This few months period in Singapore, however, didn’t seem to bother is large number of fans who have supported Taufik from the very start, when he had won the Junior Asian Junior Championships in 2000.

There is more than a love story between him and his fans. Taufik is known in his home country just as much as David Beckham in England. And he is on covers of the local magazines just as much for his titles as for his life outside court, with rumours and stories about him and his numerous and famous past girlfriends or fights outside courts. He is more than a public figure. The best proof is his recent wedding to Armi Dianti Gumelar, whom he had met in Athens, in 2004, the youngest daughter of the Indonesian National Sport Committee Chairman Agum Gumelar. The ceremony brought together more than 4000 people amongst which Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

If Taufik’s history in the Thomas Cup is not necessarily the best as he often has missed out this important Rendez-vous for his team mates and his country, Indonesia will definitely count on him to get back the crown they once had gotten, in 2002, before China avenged itself by scooping the Trophy in Taufik’s Garden in 2004. Furthermore, and even if he hasn’t been able to practise a lot lately, he was beaten few days ago in the Thomas Cup Qualifying stage by Boonsak Ponsana of Thailand, even if his team beat the Thais at the end of the day. He will play a key figure in his team as the most capped and experienced player in singles with Sony Dwi Kuncoro and Simon Santoso as younger partners. It will then all depend on his motivation and state of form in May...

Taufik Hidayat, born on August 10 1980,

1998	Brunei Open	Winner
1999	Indonesia Open Singapore Open All England Asian Junior Championships	Winner Runner - Up Runner - Up Winner
2000	Indonesia Open Malaysia Open All England Olympic Games	Winner Winner Runner - Up ¼ Final
2001	Singapore Open Swiss Open World Championships	Winner ½ Final ½ Final
2002	Indonesia Open Chinese Taipei Open Asian Games Asian Championships	Winner Winner Champion Runner - Up
2003	Japan Open	½ Final
2004	All England Olympic Games	½ Final Winner
2005	World Championships	Winner