Jonatan Christie

Leonardus Jonatan Christie is a prominent Indonesian badminton player who plays for the Tangkas Specs club. He is an expert in the singles division. He achieved the men's singles title at the SEA Games in 2017 and the Asian Games in 2018. Christie competed for Indonesia in the 2020 Thomas Cup, where his team won.

Early Life

Indonesian badminton player Jonatan Christie was born on September 15, 1997. His hometown is Jakarta, Indonesia. In 2013, Jonatan became the international representative of Indonesia. As of March 2021, he was placed eighth in the BWF men's singles rankings. Indonesian Jonatan Christie, a.k.a. Jojo, is a badminton phenomenon and a viral internet celebrity. Being an icon in his native nation, he is regarded as a strong contender for the gold medal in Tokyo 2020 at the young age of 22. According to Christie, "I always have in mind that I will certainly make Indonesia proud."

The parents of Jonatan Christie are Andreas Adi Siswa and Marlanti Djaja. Andreas, his father, used to play football for his country. In primary school, Jonatan became interested in badminton as one of the extracurricular activities, along with taekwondo, football, and basketball. His father helped him decide between badminton and three other sports because he was afraid that playing outside sports would cause his complexion to get darker. He displayed his athletic prowess by competing in a badminton match at the school level.

Originally, Christie wanted to pursue a career in swimming instead of racquet sports, but his father discouraged him from doing so because he didn't want his son's skin tone to go "darker."

In his first grade of elementary school, he joined an extracurricular badminton club, and that's when it all began, he claimed. There was actually more than just badminton. Football, taekwondo, and basketball were also available. My father's passion brought me to the game of badminton. He advised me to select badminton above the other three sports.

"I inquired as to why. He had a straightforward explanation: he didn't want my skin tone to darken further. He believed that playing badminton was the best option. At that point, I wasn't very interested in badminton. I had yet to learn what badminton even was. Back then, swimming was more my thing. Back in kindergarten, I won the first prize in a swimming competition."

Since 2013, this young man has competed internationally. He took home his first international senior title at the age of 15 at the Indonesia International Challenge. In the final, he defeated Alamsyah Yunus, who was eleven years older and significantly more experienced. He won the gold medal representing Indonesia in the men's singles badminton category at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, defeating Chou Tien-Chen in straight sets, 21-18, 20-22, and 21-15. His team also came out on top.

Christie practices strict Roman Catholicism. After announcing their romance to the world in 2020, he became officially engaged to Shania Junianatha, a former member of the JKT48 idol group, in December 2021. Christie wed Junianatha on December 1, 2023, at the Jakarta Cathedral, with Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, the Archbishop of Jakarta, officiating.

Christie engages in charitable endeavors. After the Asian Games in 2018, he donated 1.5 billion Rupiah to build a mosque and school in Lombok in the wake of the same year's disaster. Additionally, he spearheaded fundraising campaigns for several causes, such as the supply of clean water in East Nusa Tenggara, aid for Indonesian citizens affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, support for victims who experienced the Semeru eruption, and education for children in the Bantar Gebang trash region. In order to assist a selected set of awardees with their education and ability building, he founded the Beasiswa Jalincita scholarship in January 2023.

Part of a Featured Film

He had a minor role in the badminton-themed movie King in 2009. In the film, directed by Ari Sihasale, there were several well-known badminton players, such as King, Hariyanto Arbi, Hastomo Arbi, Ellen Angelina, Ivana Lie, Rosiana Tendean, Maria Kristin Yulianti, Fransisca Ratnasari, and, during their youth, Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo, Rafiddias Akhdan Nugroho, Cisita Joity Jansen, Uswatun Khasanah, and Intan Dwi Jayanti.

Christie is happy with his original calling and has yet to think about going into cinema. "Because playing badminton is my passion. In badminton, I have my own goal." "I don't think I'll ever be a movie star," he remarked. "My goal is to become a proficient badminton player." I've really had opportunities to appear in movies on a few previous occasions, but I turned them down because I'm not passionate about acting". Though he was still a youngster when he made that statement in 2014, things may change rapidly when they are in the public eye.

Career

Christie progressed to the semifinals of the 2012 National Championship in Solo, Central Java, and was eventually called to join the Indonesian national team. Christie, then 15 years old, defeated the seasoned Alamsyah Yunus, an 11-year-old, in the final, 21-17, 21-10, to win his first-ever international senior title in the Indonesia International Challenge in July 2013.

Christie ranked #1 in the world in the BWF boys' singles rankings at the beginning of the 2014 season. Christie, who is still participating in the junior competition, made it to the senior event finals of the 2014 Indonesia International Challenge. However, he was defeated by Korean veteran Lee Hyun-il in five sets, 10-11, 11-9, 11-5, 8-11, and 3-11, and was unable to defend his championship. He was the Swiss International champion in October.

Christie qualified for the 2017 Thailand Open Grand Prix finals as well as the Korea Open Super Series. Anthony Sinisuka Ginting of Korea and B. Sai Praneeth of Thailand defeated him. He took home gold in the SEA Games in August in both the men's singles and team competitions.

Asian Games A Surprise

In the 2018 Asia Team Championships, Christie with the Indonesian men's team scored 3-1 over China defeating them in the championship match. He made it to the New Zealand Open final in May, but Lin Dan-a two-time Olympic champion-beat him in straight games. In the team competition, he helped the Indonesian team earn a silver medal.

Christie won the Australian Open and the New Zealand Open in May 2019, giving him two victories on the Oceania tour. Christie then advanced to the Japan and French Open finals, as well as the Super 750 event. Furthermore, Christie advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2019 World Championship, Korea, Indonesia, and Fuzhou China Opens; they also reached the Hong Kong Open semifinals. His disappointing performances came from losing in the opening round of both the Asian Championships and the China Open. He eventually earned a spot in the World Tour Finals, but his adventure was cut short in the group stage. On August 6, 2019, he achieved his career high of ranking fourth in the BWF World.

Redeeming The Thomas Cup, Making an Olympic Debut, And Losing The Sudirman Cup In 2021

Christie participated in the Tokyo, Japan, 2020 Summer Olympics. He was the winner in Group G, defeating both Loh Kean Yew and Aram Mahmoud. He was eliminated in the Round of 16 after losing to Shi Yuqi of China in a run of consecutive games. Christie and the Indonesian squad participated in the 2021 Sudirman Cup in Vantaa, Finland, from September to October of that year.

In the group stage, he faced up against Canadian Brian Yang but lost the rubber games. Although Indonesia made it to the quarterfinals, they were defeated by Malaysia. Against Denmark in the semifinals, when he faced Anders Antonsen for 100 minutes, and China in the finals, where he faced Li Shifeng, he more than made up for his disappointing performance in the earlier rounds. His performance at the Denmark Open was consistent, but he was forced to withdraw from the French Open after suffering a wrist injury in his quarterfinal encounter against Kento Momota.

World Tour Finals in 2022

Christie exited the German Open in the second round to begin his 2022 campaign. Following the tournament, Christie's COVID-19 inspection came back positive. After two tests, he was fortunate enough to test negative and head to Birmingham for the All-England Open. The All-England quarterfinal match ended in a loss against Chou Tien-chen. Christie went on to win the Swiss Open, which marked his first BWF World Tour victory after 2019.

He advanced to the Korea Open finals in April but was defeated by Chinese player Weng Hongyang. He then lost to Lee Zii Jia at the Badminton Asia Championships, coming in second place. But after wasting six set chances against Chou Tien-Chen, he was eliminated from the 2022 BWF World Championships in the quarterfinals. Christie reached the semifinals of the 2022 BWF World Tour Finals before losing to his teammate and ultimate runner-up Anthony Sinisuka Ginting. Christie had a few more early exits, but he still managed to qualify.

Super 750 And Super 500 Titles First

Christie commenced the year ranked third in the world. Kenta Nishimoto defeated him in the second round of the Malaysia Open, which was the first tournament of the season. Viktor Axelsen, the number one seed, defeated him in the India Open semifinals the following week. Christie went on to win the Indonesia Masters, defeating teammate Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo in the process. This marked Christie's first Super 500 victory and the first all-Indonesian men's singles final in the tournament since 2013.

Numerous early exits characterized Christie's performance during the year despite the bright beginning. He lost to Shi Yuqi in the first round of the Singapore Open, to Weng Hongyang in the first round of the All-England Open, and to Kenta Nishimoto in the second round of the Malaysia Masters. He made it to the quarterfinals of the Indonesia Open, but lost to runner-up Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, a fellow teammate.

Christie advanced to the Japan Open semifinals for the second time in 2023. After losing in straight games to the world's top player, Viktor Axelsen, he came in second. In the Australian Open second round, Ng Tze Yong won against him, while in the World Championships first round, Lee Zii Jia was defeated. After making it to the China Open semifinals, he was defeated by Axelsen once more.

After that, in 2023, Christie won his second victory at the Hong Kong Open, making history as the first Indonesian to win the men's singles championship in a quarter

century. He was unsuccessful in reclaiming his title in his third Asian Games appearance, having lost in the first round against Chou Tien-Chen following an upset victory over Lee Yun-gyu of South Korea in the second singles of the men's competition.

Christie lost to Chou Tien-Chen in the first round of the Denmark Open, continuing his awful run. He unexpectedly bounced back, defeating Li Shifeng to win his maiden Super 750 title at the French Open. He went on to the Kumamoto Masters quarterfinals, but he was not able to defeat Viktor Axelsen, and as a result, his winning run in matches ended in 2023 without going to three games. A foot problem later caused Christie to withdraw from the China Masters.

Playing Style of Christie

The pin-up boy of badminton in Indonesia exudes style and attitude, and he brings it all on the court. A winning combination is having both strength and speed, nimble defense, anticipation, and lightning-fast movement on the court. And then there's his hit. The legendary "King of the smash," Indonesia's highly accomplished badminton player Lim Swie King, has been likened to him due to his devastatingly accurate and forceful performance.

However, perhaps the most powerful tool in his toolbox-passion-enhances each person's unique skills and abilities. Referees have warned him about extended celebrations in between points because they believe he is overly enthusiastic on the court.

"It just happens; it's not intended. I'm lucky to be fortunate to play against all of these fantastic players." In April, he stated, "I simply want to relish this journey." His next move into the world's top five will depend on how well he manages all that passion and emotion. Christie was born with the winning gene and the will to excel. Even at a young age, Christie's destiny in badminton was obvious.

As of right now, Christie has accumulated 207 career victories, is ranked third on the men's singles world tour, and sixth on the BWF men's singles world ranking. He has also established himself as a fashion icon, garnered sponsors' line-ups in order, and received more than half a million likes on his Instagram entries.