Roy Díaz González

Roy Díaz González (born 1953) is a former world-class badminton player from Mexico. Something of a child prodigy in the sport, González began touring internationally at fourteen, the age at which he captured the first of his many Mexican national singles titles.^[1] He won the Belgian International men's doubles title at fifteen and the Swiss Open men's singles title at sixteen.^[2][3][4]

Roy Díaz González
Personal information
Country	Mexico
Born	1953 (age 71–72)
Men's singles & doubles
Highest ranking	15 (MS, 1981)
Medal record Men's badminton Representing  Mexico Pan Am Championships 1977 Moncton Men's singles 1980 San Diego Men's singles

By his late teens, in the early 1970s, González was competitive with the world's best players, but he never developed the penetrating power, or the deceptive wizardry, which might have allowed him to break through in badminton's biggest events. Nevertheless, he remained a respected and dangerous opponent on the world scene for over a decade, admired for his footwork, stamina, and touch. In 1977 he won men's singles at the first ever Pan-American Badminton Championships.^[5]

González played in five Thomas Cup (men's international team) campaigns for Mexico, between 1970 and 1984, before finally losing a Thomas Cup singles match to another North American player. His advisor at the court was for a long time his father Dr. Jorge Díaz González.

Achievements

Pan Am Championships

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
1977	Université de Moncton, Moncton, Canada	Jamie McKee	17–14, 11–15, 15–9	Gold
1980	San Diego Badminton Club, San Diego, United States	Gary Higgins	15–5, 15–10	Gold

International Open Tournaments (5 titles, 4 runners-up)

Men's singles

Year	Tournament	Opponent	Score	Result
1969	Belgian International	Lee Kin Tat	3–15, 5–15	Runner-up
1970	Swiss Open	Hermann Fröhlich	15–6, 15–5	Winner
1972	Mexican International	Sture Johnsson	8–15, 11–15	Runner-up
1974	Swiss Open	Edy Andrey	15–3, 15–4	Winner
1977	Mexican International	Ricardo Jaramillo	15–5, 15–5	Winner

Men's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1969	Belgian International	Lee Kin Tat	Ho Kim Kooi Remy	15–8, 15–5	Winner
1970	Swiss Open	Hermann Fröhlich	Rupert Liebl Erich Eikelkamp	15–5, 15–10	Winner
1972	Mexican International	Victor Jaramillo	Jorge Palazuelos Francisco Sañudo	10–15, 14–17	Runner-up
1974	Swiss Open	Claude Bovard	Ricardo Jaramillo Francisco Sañudo	9–15, 15–6, 12–15	Runner-up

References

1. Herbert Scheele ed., The International Badminton Federation Handbook for 1971 (Canterbury, Kent, England: J. A. Jennings Ltd., 1971) 236.
2. Scheele, 123, 298.
3. "BADMINTON - A BEAULIEU: SUISSE-BELGIQUE et les "Internationaux" de Suisse - VICTOIRES AUX ETRANGERS". Le Confédéré. 1970-03-16. p. 4. Retrieved 2024-10-15 – via e-newspaperarchives.ch.
4. "Badminton - Audrey überraschte". Die Tat. 1974-03-13. p. 11. Retrieved 2024-10-15 – via e-newspaperarchives.ch.
5. "The first Pan-American Championships," World Badminton, July–August 1977, 11.