Yeo Jia Min (; born 1 February 1999) is a Singaporean badminton player. She is a former World Junior No.1 and the first Singaporean in either the junior or senior categories to made it to the top of the BWF's ranking system.
Early life and education
Yeo was born in Singapore to Malaysian Chinese emigrants who moved to Singapore and became permanent residents. Along with her parents, she became a Singaporean citizen sometime in her childhood. Yeo started playing badminton when she was seven years old, often playing with her parents. She then started formal training under the tutelage of former national player Tan Eng Han at the Assumption English School in Bukit Panjang.
At nine, she competed in the 2008 Cheers Age Group Badminton Championships and won the Under-11 championship title. At age 10, she won the Under-11 singles title at an international level when she represented Singapore at the 2009 Li-Ning Youth International.
In 2001, Yeo was selected for the national intermediate squad and three years later, promoted to the senior team. Initially choosing Nanyang Girls' High School in Bukit Timah over a scholarship offer from Singapore Sports School, she later transferred to the Singapore Sports School after six months due to scheduling issues between her studies and training.
Career
2012–2014: Junior and senior circuits tryout
In 2012, Yeo participated in four junior championships, the national U19 championships, the Badminton Asia Youth U17 & U15 Championships, the World Junior Mixed Team Championships and the World Junior Championships Eye-Level Cups. She won the national U19 championships. She played in both the singles and doubles disciplines, with her best showing at the Badminton Asia Youth Under-15 girls' singles championships where she reached the quarter-finals.
In 2013, at age 14, Yeo played in her first senior tournament at the Singapore Open where she lost in the women's singles qualifying round to her compatriot Liang Xiaoyu in two games. In the women's doubles event, she partnered with Elaine Chua Yi Ling and lost in the first round to the Korean pairing of Chang Ye-na and Kim So-yeong. Later that year, she contested in the Badminton Asia Youth U17 & U15 Championships and emerged triumphant in the Under-15 girls' singles event.
In 2014, she competed in various senior and junior tournaments in multiple disciplines. Her best result came in the girls' singles event at the German Junior Open, where she lost in the semi-finals to then China's Qin Jinjing in 33 minutes.
2015–2017: First senior title and World Junior #1
In 2015, Yeo once again reached the semi-finals of the girls' singles event at the German Junior Open, but she lost to Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt. In June, she participated in her first SEA Games and managed to win bronze in the women's team event. In August, she finished as runner-up to Indonesia's Gregoria Mariska Tunjung at the Singapore International Series. In October, Yeo clinched two titles at the Badminton Asia U17 & U15 Junior Championships in Kudus, Indonesia. She defeated the unseeded Indonesian Sri Fatmawati in the Under-17 girls' singles final. Then, she partnered compatriot Crystal Wong to beat Japan's Natsu Saito and Rumi Yoshida to clinch the U-17 girls' doubles title.
In 2016, Yeo won the first senior title of her career when she defeated Ayumi Mine of Japan in the Vietnam Open Grand Prix in two straight games. She followed up her success with another title, at the junior level, in the Junior Grand Prix held in Jakarta, Indonesia. There, she defeated Kim Ga-eun of Korea in two tightly contested games, 21–19, 21–19, to win the final in 35 minutes.
In 2017, Yeo continued her good form in the junior tournaments by winning the Dutch Junior Open held in March by beating Pattarasuda Chaiwan of Thailand in two games. The following week, she reached the final of the German Junior Open but lost to Hirari Mizui of Japan. In June, Yeo was ranked World Junior No.1 in the girls' singles event after she overtook Malaysia's Goh Jin Wei, making it the first time that a Singaporean badminton player, in either junior or senior categories, made it to the top of the BWF's ranking system. In July, Yeo won a bronze medal at the Asian Junior Championships after reaching the semi-finals stage. However, she was defeated by Chaiwan this time, in a marathon three-set match that lasted for 63 minutes. In August, she won her second women's team bronze at the SEA Games where Singapore reached the semi-finals of the women's team competition but lost to Thailand, the eventual winner, 0–3.