Badminton Europe celebrated a memorable evening in Horsens tonight as the annual Awards Ceremony brought together the badminton community to honour the standout performances and contributions from 2025.

The event highlighted excellence across all areas of the sport, from elite performance on court to impactful work behind the scenes and within the wider badminton community. The ceremony reflected both the diversity and strength of badminton across the continent.

A total of 12 awards were presented during the evening, alongside the induction of the newest member into the BEC Hall of Fame. The winners were celebrated in distinguished company, including Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul, former BWF and BEC President and last year’s Hall of Fame inductee Poul-Erik Høyer, as well as former BEC Presidents Torsten Berg, Gregory Verpoorten and Joao Matos. It was truly a star-studded Awards Ceremony set in elegant surroundings in Horsens, with several top names attending, including Christo Popov and Delphine Delrue.

The winners of this year’s Awards Ceremony, in the order they were presented during the show, were:

Coach of the Year – Toma Popov (France)
Senior Player of the Year – Drifa Hardardottir (Iceland)
Social Media Award – Thomas Fuchs (Germany)
BEC Diversity Award – Badminton Wales
Shot of the Year – Thibault Gardon (France)
Technical Official Award – Christian Johannesen (Denmark)
Female Player of the Year – Delphine Delrue (France)
Para-Badminton Player of the Year – Ilaria Olgiati (Switzerland)
Young Player of the Year – Mady Sow (France)
European Fan Player of the Year – Tugce Celik (Türkiye)
Male Player of the Year – Christo Popov (France)
President’s Medal – Gregory Verpoorten (Belgium)
Hall of Fame – Carolina Marin (Spain)

The final honour of the evening was the induction of Carolina Marin into the BEC Hall of Fame. Although she was unable to attend the ceremony in Horsens, she was surprised nearly two weeks earlier in Huelva. This special moment will be shared on Badminton Europe’s social media channels in the coming week.

As tradition dictates, a portrait of the new Hall of Fame member was created and unveiled in front of the audience. The unveiling was carried out by Badminton Europe President Sven Serré together with BWF President Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul.

The celebrations continue in Horsens throughout the evening, before attention turns to the action on court, with the upcoming Thomas & Uber Cup set to begin tomorrow.

Congratulations to all nominees and a big congratulations to all the winners.