Who is Prakash Padukone? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Indian Celebrities Born In June

Age: 68 Years, 68 Year Old Males

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Ujjala Padukone

father: Ramesh Padukone

children: Anisha Padukone, Deepika Padukone

Badminton Players Indian Men

Height: 6'1" (185 cm), 6'1" Males

City: Bangalore, India

More Facts

awards: Arjuna Award for Badminton

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Childhood & Early Life

Prakash Padukone was born on 10 June 1955, in Padukone village near Kundapura, Udupi district, Karnataka, India, to Ramesh Padukone and Ahilya Padukone. His father was the Secretary of the Mysore Badminton Association for many years.

His father introduced Prakash to the game when he was quite young and the boy immediately developed an interest in the game. His first official tournament was the Karnataka state junior championship in 1962 which he lost in the very first round.

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Career

Prakash Padukone won the state junior title in 1964, and from then on, his career progressed at a fast pace. His playing style evolved over the years and he went on to win the national senior championship in 1971. As a 16 year old he became the youngest player to achieve this feat.

Over the ensuing years he won each successive national championship until 1979, setting a record of nine national titles in a row.

Already a player of national fame by the late 1970s, he achieved his first major international title in 1978 when he won the men's singles gold medal at the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada.

He established himself as one of the most competitive international badminton players and completely dominated the top European players in 1980 to win both the Danish Open and the Swedish Open.

His biggest career achievement also happened in 1980. He won the men's singles title at the All England Championship with a victory over Indonesian rival Liem Swie King, becoming the first Indian to do so. This win catapulted Padukone to the No. 1 world badminton ranking, making him the first Indian to achieve that status.

His successful stint continued throughout the 1980s. He won the first Alba World Cup in October 1981 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and proceeded to win the first Indian open prize-money tournament, the Indian Masters (now the India Open), at Pune, the same year. In 1982 he won the Dutch Open and the Hong Kong Open.

After an illustrious playing career he retired as a player in 1991. Following his retirement he served as the chairman of the Badminton Association of India for a short while. He coached the Indian national badminton team from 1993 to 1996.

Really passionate about the game, he decided to set up his own coaching center. In the early 1990s badminton was not a much popular sport and it was not easy for him to get sponsors. He got lucky when BPL recognized the potential of the upcoming venture and provided support.

Along with fellow stalwarts of Indian badminton, Vimal Kumar and Vivek Kumar, Padukone launched the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA) in October 1994. The academy imparts world-class training and coaching to young players who are selected to the Academy on merit. It has since its inception produced multiple national and international level champions.

In 2001, Prakash Padukone along with Geet Sethi, a professional player of English billiards, co-founded Olympic Gold Quest which is a Foundation for the Promotion of Sports in India.

Awards & Achievements

He was awarded the Arjuna award for his sporting achievements in 1972.

In 1982 he was honored with Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India, for his contributions to sports.

Personal Life & Legacy

He is married to Ujjala Padukone and has two daughters: Deepika, a popular Bollywood actress, and Anisha, a golfer.

Prakash Padukone Biography