USA Badminton Continues Strong International Presence at the International U16 Shonai Invitational 2026
- August 18, 2026
- 8:26 am
USA Badminton marked another successful showing at the International U16 Shonai Invitational, an elite global event where the United States has been invited five times since its inception in 2019. The tournament resumed in 2023 after the pandemic pause, and American juniors have consistently demonstrated they can compete—and excel— against top athletes outside the Badminton Pan Am region.
In July 2026, Vivian Feng and Abhiram Tripuraneni represented Team USA with standout performances. Feng advanced out of group play, secured a decisive quarterfinal win, and made her way to the semifinals, finishing as a top‑4 bronze medallist in women’s singles. Tripuraneni also delivered a strong debut performance, finishing 9th out of 16. Thank you to Liang Qiu for coaching the two USA junior players in this international competition.
USA Badminton’s history at the Shonai Invitational highlights a growing pipeline of internationally competitive junior athletes:
2026: Vivian Feng (Bronze Medallist), Abhiram Tripuraneni (9th)
2025: Annie Meng (Top8), Rithik Rasamsetti (Top8)
2024: Micah Cruz (Bronze Medallist), Shriyans Bhagavatula (9th)
2023: Nicole Krawcyzk (Top12), Zicheng Xu (Top16)
2019: Natalie Chi (Bronze Medallist), Kalea Sheung (10th), Adrian Mar (Top8), Daniel Bielin (Bronze Medallist)
USA Badminton remains committed to developing athletes who can perform on the world stage, and the Shonai Invitational continues to be a key proving ground for emerging U.S. talent.