Nico Meerholz

Nico Meerholz
Personal information
Birth name	Nico George Meerholz
Country	South Africa
Born	(1959-10-23) 23 October 1959 (age 65)
Height	1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[1]
Weight	78 kg (172 lb)
Years active	1988-2001
Handedness	Left
Men's singles & doubles
Career record	28 wins, 10 losses
Medal record Men's badminton Representing  South Africa African Championships 1992 Rose Hill Men's doubles 1994 Port Elizabeth Men's doubles 1992 Rose Hill Men's singles 1992 Rose Hill Mixed doubles
BWF profile

Nico Meerholz (born 23 October 1959) is a South African badminton player. He competed in both men's singles and men's doubles at the 1992 Summer Olympics.[2] He is one of the first South African players to win gold in men's doubles at the African Badminton Championships.

Career

In 1992, Meerholz competed in the 1992 African Badminton Championships in all three disciplines. In men's singles, he defeated Mohamed Juma of Tanzania and entered the semi-finals. He won bronze after losing to Anton Kriel.[3] In men's doubles, Meerholz partnered with Kriel and won gold in the event after defeating Gilles Allet and Eddy Clarisse of Mauritius in the final.[4] In mixed doubles, Meerholz partnered with Tracey Thompson. The duo lost in the semi-finals against their compatriots.[5]

Later that year, Meerholz competed in the Summer Olympics in Barcelona. He competed in the men's singles event but lost in the first round to Chan Kin Ngai of Hong Kong.[6] Meerholz also competed with Anton Kriel in men's doubles. Their momentum was stopped in the first round after they lost to Shuji Matsuno and Shinji Matsuura of Japan.[7]

In 1996, Meerholz and Kriel lost the South Africa International men's doubles final to Johan Kleingeld and Gavin Polmans. A year later, the duo won the title after defeating the same opponents they faced in the previous final.[8][9]

Achievements

African Championships

Men's singles

Year	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result
1992	Rose Hill, Mauritius	Anton Kriel	13–15, 8–15	Bronze

Men's doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1992	Rose Hill, Mauritius	Anton Kriel	Gilles Allet Eddy Clarisse	15–7, 15–1	Gold
1994	University of Port Elizabeth, Port Elizabeth, South Africa	Alan Phillips	Stephan Beeharry Eddy Clarisse		Gold

Mixed doubles

Year	Venue	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1992	Rose Hill, Mauritius	Tracey Thompson	Anton Kriel Lina Fourie	7–15, 7–15	Bronze

IBF International (2 titles, 3 runner-up)

Men's doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1996	South Africa International	Anton Kriel	Johan Kleingeld Gavin Polmans	15–17, 11–15	Runner-up
1997	South Africa International	Anton Kriel	Johan Kleingeld Gavin Polmans	15–7, 15–10	Winner
2000	South Africa International	Anton Kriel	Johan Kleingeld Gavin Polmans	14–17, 15–12, 15–9	Winner

Mixed doubles

Year	Tournament	Partner	Opponent	Score	Result
1995	Botswana International	Tracey Thompson	Johan Kleingeld Lina Fourie	3–15, 3–15	Runner-up
1997	South Africa International	Tracey Thompson	Johan Kleingeld Lina Fourie	15–10, 9–15, 4–15	Runner-up

References

1. "Nico Meerholz Biography and Olympic Results | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". Archived from the original on 3 December 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
2. "Nico Meerholz". Olympedia. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
3. "BWF - African Championships 1992 (T) - Draw - MS". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
4. "BWF - African Championships 1992 (T) - Draw - MD". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
5. "BWF - African Championships 1992 (T) - Draw - XD - MX". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
6. "Olympedia – Singles, Men". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
7. "Olympedia – Doubles, Men". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
8. "Player - Nico Meerholz - South African Int'l 1996 | BWF". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
9. "Player - Nico Meerholz - South African Champs 1997 (I) | BWF". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Retrieved 17 October 2023.