Copenhagen: After a successful trip in Asia – winning the 2017 Japan Open and attending promotional tours in China, Viktor Axelsen has returned to Denmark and has gotten back to training.
“I’m happy to be home, to get back to my usual routines and to start working out a little bit. Fortunately, there are still a couple of weeks before the next tournament,” said Axelsen to Danish media as he was referring to the Denmark Open that will kick off on October 17th.
The 23-year-old Axelsen who became World Champion at the end of August, was feeling upbeat about the 2017 season.
“My success in the past two tournaments really boosted my confidence, and of course, it also makes it a little more fun to get to the training, because, I know the things I do in training and on the court are working out perfectly,” said Axelsen.
“It gives the belief that if I continue to train hard, good things will happen. This really makes me stay motivated.”
“A lot of things have changed after I won the World Championships. When I walk on the street, people would congratulate me. It’s a super cool feeling.”
“Also, when someone told me that ‘you have inspired my kid or daughter to play badminton, or you are a huge role model’, it makes me want to get out there even more and to help promote the sport.”
The World No. 1 Viktor Axelsen has been drawn in the same half of the Denmark Open draw as Lin Dan, who, alongside Kidambi Srikanth, could spoil the chances of Axelsen from wining the Denmark Open in front of the home crowd.