Dr. David G. Freeman
| David G. Freeman | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Nickname(s) | Pasadena Flash |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Born |
September 6, 1920 Pasadena, California |
| Died | June 28, 2001 (aged 80) Rancho Santa Fe, California |
| Handedness | Right |
Dr. David Guthrie Freeman (6 September 1920 – 28 June 2001) was an American badminton player from California who became an icon in the sport's history.
Freeman was born on September 6, 1920 in Pasadena, the son of Robert Freeman, a Presbyterian minister, and Margery Fulton, professor of religion. In 1938 he graduated from Pasadena JC and in 1942 got his B.A. at Pomona College. He entered Harvard Medical School in 1942 and completed its accelerated war-time curriculum in 1945.
During his teenage years Freeman demonstrated exceptional ability in tennis, table tennis, and, particularly, badminton. From early in 1939, at the age of eighteen, through his final tournament match fourteen years later, Freeman was undefeated in badminton singles competition. Displaying his characteristic quickness, agility, and shot-making precision, Freeman won the prestigious All-England Championship on his only try (1949) and remains the sole American to win the men's singles there. In this one-time-only badminton stint in Europe he also won Thomas Cup singles matches against eventual champion Malaya, and captured the Danish Open. In all, he won three matches each against Ooi Teik Hock and the very formidable Wong Peng Soon. After apparently retiring from badminton in 1950 to concentrate on a career in neurosurgery, Freeman made a brief comeback in 1953. He won the four tournaments that he entered which concluded with the U.S. National Championships in Boston, and a victory in the very same hall where he had last lost a singles match fourteen years earlier. He is the only American born male to be inducted into both the U.S. and World Badminton Halls of Fame.
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