Toma Junior Popov
French badminton player (born 1998)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Toma Junior Popov (born 29 September 1998) is a French badminton player.[1][2] Partnered with his brother Christo Popov, he won the men's doubles gold at the 2025 European Championships.[3] He competed at the 2018 Mediterranean Games and claimed the men's singles bronze medal.[4] The Popov brothers also competed for France at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the men's doubles event.[5]
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Popov at the 2018 Dutch Open | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 29 September 1998 Sofia, Bulgaria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 86 kg (190 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | France | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Badminton | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Men's singles & doubles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 13 (MS, 2 September 2025) 16 (MD with Christo Popov, 29 July 2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 17 (MS) 21 (MD with Christo Popov) (14 April 2026) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BWF profile | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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In the juniors, Popov won the bronze medal at the 2015 European Junior Championships in the boys' singles event.[6] Popov made history as the first non-Danish male player to win a European Junior team gold as well as the men's singles and doubles in 2017. He joined Peter Gade, Jim Laugesen, and Thomas Stuer-Lauridsen as the only men to have ever completed the treble.[7]
Early and personal life
Born in Sofia, Popov came from a badminton family. His father, Thomas, is a former Bulgarian and French national player. His brother, Christo Popov, also plays badminton. He started to play when he was 8 with neighbour and won his school championship at age of 9. Both of them trained at the Fos-sur-Mer club.[8]
Career
In 2026, Popov and the Frech team captured the gold medal by breaking Denmark's long-standing dominance in the European Men's Team Championships.[9] He then became a finalist in the Orléans Masters defeating by Alex Lanier in the final.[10]
Achievements
European Games
Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Arena Jaskółka, Tarnów, Poland |  Viktor Axelsen |
17–21, 18–21 |  Bronze |
Men's doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Arena Jaskółka, Tarnów, Poland |
 Christo Popov |
 Ben Lane Sean Vendy |
15–21, 14–21 | Bronze |
European Championships
Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Polideportivo Municipal Gallur, Madrid, Spain | Anders Antonsen |
16–21, 21–19, 15–21 | Bronze |
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| 2024 | Saarlandhalle, Saarbrücken, Germany | Anders Antonsen |
18–21, 13–21 |  Silver |
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| 2025 | Forum, Horsens, Denmark | Alex Lanier |
17–21, 18–21 | Silver |
[3] |
| 2026 | Palacio de los Deportes Carolina Marín, Huelva, Spain | Christo Popov |
18–21, 25–27 | Bronze |
Men's doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Forum, Horsens, Denmark | Christo Popov |
Éloi Adam Léo Rossi |
21–12, 18–21, 21–18 |  Gold |
[3] |
| 2026 | Palacio de los Deportes Carolina Marín, Huelva, Spain | Christo Popov |
 Ben Lane Sean Vendy |
15–21, 16–21 | Silver |
[11] |
Mediterranean Games
Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | El Morell Pavilion, Tarragona, Spain |  Muhammed Ali Kurt |
21–17, 21–16 | Bronze |
[4] |
European Junior Championships
Boys' singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Regional Sport Centrum Hall, Lubin, Poland | Anders Antonsen |
13–21, 9–21 | Bronze |
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| 2017 | Centre Sportif Régional d'Alsace, Mulhouse, France | Arnaud Merklé |
21–14, 21–15 | Gold |
[7] |
Boys' doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Centre Sportif Régional d'Alsace, Mulhouse, France |
Thom Gicquel |
Max Flynn Callum Hemming |
21–17, 21–13 | Gold |
[7] |
BWF World Tour (4 titles, 5 runners-up)
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[12] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the BWF World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.[13]
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | SaarLorLux Open | Super 100 |  Mark Caljouw |
22–20, 19–21, 21–14 |  Winner |
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| 2021 | Orléans Masters | Super 100 | Mads Christophersen |
23–21, 21–13 | Winner |
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| 2021 | Spain Masters | Super 300 |  Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo |
21–15, 21–17 | Winner |
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| 2022 | Orléans Masters | Super 100 |  Mithun Manjunath |
21–11, 21–19 | Winner |
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| 2024 | Spain Masters | Super 300 |  Loh Kean Yew |
11–21, 21–15, 20–22 |  Runner-up |
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| 2024 | Hylo Open | Super 300 | Christo Popov |
13–21, 10–21 | Runner-up |
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| 2026 | German Open | Super 300 | Christo Popov |
16–21, 15–21 | Runner-up |
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| 2026 | Orléans Masters | Super 300 | Alex Lanier |
11–21, 13–21 | Runner-up |
[10] |
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | German Open | Super 300 | Christo Popov |
 Kim Won-ho Seo Seung-jae |
19–21, 17–21 | Runner-up |
BWF International Challenge/Series (10 titles, 1 runner-up)
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Latvia International |  Kasper Lehikoinen |
21–14, 21–14 | Winner |
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| 2018 | Hellas International |  Ondřej Král |
21–7, 21–13 | Winner |
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| 2018 | Latvia International | Léo Rossi |
21–10, 21–15 | Winner |
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| 2018 | Spanish International | Lucas Corvée |
21–13, 21–17 | Winner |
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| 2018 | Bulgarian Open | Arnaud Merklé |
22–20, 21–12 | Winner |
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| 2018 | Czech Open | Victor Svendsen |
21–16, 21–11 | Winner |
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| 2019 | Bulgarian Open |  Abhinav Manota |
21–15, 21–10 | Winner |
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| 2019 | Irish Open |  Pablo Abián |
21–10, 24–22 | Winner |
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Bulgarian Eurasia Open | Thomas Vallez |
Ronan Guéguin Alexandre Hammer |
11–10, 11–10, 11–9 | Winner |
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| 2018 | Bulgarian Open | Christo Popov |
 Chen Yu-jun Lin Bing-wei |
17–21, 21–7, 21–17 | Winner |
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| 2019 | Italian International | Christo Popov |
 Bjarne Geiss Jan Colin Völker |
18–21, 16–21 | Runner-up |
BWF Junior International (9 titles, 4 runners-up)
Boys' singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Bulgarian Junior International | Alexandre Hammer |
11–10, 4–11, 4–11, 11–6, 11–4 | Winner |
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| 2015 | Bulgarian Junior International |  Daniel Nikolov |
21–9, 19–21, 13–21 | Runner-up |
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| 2015 | Slovenia Junior International |  Wolfgang Gnedt |
21–14, 10–21, 23–21 | Winner |
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| 2016 | Hellas Junior International |  Nhat Nguyen |
21–17, 11–21, 21–14 | Winner |
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| 2016 | Belgian Junior International | Arnaud Merklé |
21–15, 21–12 | Winner |
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| 2016 | Danish Junior Cup | Nhat Nguyen |
21–16, 19–21, 24–22 | Winner |
Boys' doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Bulgarian Junior International | Thomas Vallez |
Ronan Gueguin Alexandre Hammer |
10–11, 11–10, 9–11, 11–6, 6–11 | Runner-up |
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| 2015 | Hungarian Junior International | Thomas Vallez |
 Aleksander Jabłoński Paweł Śmiłowski |
21–17, 20–22, 21–19 | Winner |
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| 2015 | Slovenia Junior International | Gregor Dunikowski |
Emre Cömert Baran Yüksel |
21–16, 21–17 | Winner |
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| 2016 | Hellas Junior International | Thomas Baures |
Éloi Adam Samy Corvée |
21–18, 21–15 | Winner |
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| 2016 | Bulgarian Junior International | Léo Rossi |
 Pakin Kuna-anuvit Natthapat Trinkajee |
13–21, 8–21 | Runner-up |
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| 2016 | Belgian Junior International | Léo Rossi |
Zach Russ Steven Stallwood |
21–11, 21–15 | Winner |
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| 2016 | Danish Junior Cup | Karl Thor Søndergaard |
Rasmus Kjær Jesper Toft |
14–21, 21–17, 17–21 | Runner-up |
- BWF Junior International Grand Prix tournament
- BWF Junior International Challenge tournament
- BWF Junior International Series tournament
- BWF Junior Future Series tournament
