Top 50 Moments of 2017: No. 34 - South Koreans kings of the courts

Individually, Jungjun Kim and Sam Seop Lee extended their World Championships singles dominance to three straight titles.

When combined, they became even more dominant.

The South Korean duo were kings on their own home courts at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Para Badminton World Championships 2017 in Ulsan, and their performances come in at No. 34 on the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC) Top 50 Moments of 2017.

Kim and Lee entered the Championships as the top seeds in the men’s singles WH 2 and WH 1, respectively, and they lived up to their billing, giving their home crowd plenty to cheer for.

Lee had won the World title in 2013 and proved that his talent in the sport was no fluke when successfully defended his gold at the 2015 Worlds in Stoke Mandeville, Great Britain. His performance that year earned him the 2015 Male Para Badminton Player of the Year, which was the first time the Badminton World Federation (BWF) had given the honour.

It was not just a great year for Lee, but rather the beginning of a star in the making.

Lee won the men’s singles WH 1 gold at the 2016 Asian Championships, and he has continued to ride that winning streak into 2017 with a dominating performance in Ulsan.

He had won the men’s doubles WH 1-2 World gold in 2015. This time, Lee’s defense came with a new partner – Jungjun Kim.

The two individual world champions combined for another gold.

To the delight of the home crowd, the doubles finals featured an all-South Korean showdown against Sung Hun Kim and Jung Man Choi. Despite dropping the first set, Jungjun Kim and Lee came back to win the next two and the eventual title.

Another thrilling all-South Korean showdown was featured in the men’s singles WH 2 competition, where Jungjun Kim faced his training partner Kyung Hoon Kim. The finals were a repeat of the 2015 Worlds edition, and so were the results. For Jungjun Kim, the victory was his third straight World Championship gold medal and putting a stamp on his dominance in the category.

The full rundown of the Top 50 Moments will continue until 31 December.