Canada’s Victor Lai secured the men’s singles bronze medal once again at the badminton world championships held on Saturday. The 21-year-old athlete hailing from Markham, Ontario, and seeded seventh, faced a defeat in the semifinals against the European champion, Alex Lanier of France, with a score of 16-21, 21-13, 21-14 at the Indira Gandhi Arena in New Delhi.

In this tournament, both semifinalists who do not progress to the final round are awarded bronze medals. Lai made history last year by winning Canada’s inaugural medal at a badminton world championship, defeating the 2021 world champion, Loh Kean Yew of Singapore, in the quarterfinals in Paris.

This year, Lai once again showcased his prowess by defeating Loh in the round of 16 and then overcoming Rasmus Gemke of Denmark in the quarterfinals to secure his second world championship medal. Notably, Lai’s remarkable performance has propelled him from the 50th position to seventh in the global rankings over the past year.