Taiwan's Chou freezes out Thai opponent to win Arctic Open title

Taipei, Oct. 13 (CNA) Taiwan's badminton ace Chou Tien-chen (周天成) was crowned the men's singles champion at the 2025 Arctic Open on Sunday, after defeating Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand 21-11, 13-21, 21-19.

The 35-year-old Chou, who is ranked world No. 5, and the 24-year-old Vitidsarn, ranked world No. 3, battled it out for 1 hour and 17 minutes in a grueling three-game match at Energia Areena in Vantaa, Finland.

In the first game, Chou took an early 9-7 lead and maintained his momentum, widening the gap, before defeating Vitidsarn 21-11.

At the start of the second game, the two players were neck-and-neck. When Vitidsarn pulled ahead 14-13, Chou appeared to be fading, and the Thai shuttler scored seven straight points to win the game 21-13.

Chou seemed to regain his momentum in the third game, taking an early 10-5 lead, but Vitidsarn gradually caught up, leveling the playing field again.

With the score tied at 19-19, Chou made a strategic play to edge ahead 20-19 and he later forced Vitidsarn to hit the shuttlecock out of bounds, ending the game 21-19.

The two-game win gave the Taiwanese player the match and earned him the men's singles title at the 2025 Arctic Open.

It was later revealed that Chou had been playing with a bloody left foot after he apparently ruptured a blister halfway through the match.

Speaking with CNA after the match, Chou said he felt the pain but kept going.

"This match was a 'fight for the children,'" Chou said, referring to several young fans in attendance at Vantaa. "I wanted to set an example for the kids."

Chou likely developed the blister as a result of playing four three-game matches in the final rounds, clocking a total of 286 minutes of playtime before facing off against Vitidsarn in the finals.

The Thai shuttler, meanwhile, had clocked 209 minutes of playtime in the last four matches before coming up against Chou.

Sunday's match marked the seventh time that Chou and Vitidsarn had faced off, with Chou prevailing 5-2.

Following the Arctic Open, Chou will next compete in the 2025 Denmark Open, which will be held Oct. 14-19 at the Arena Fyn in Odense, Denmark.