Ahn Se-young, the Korean badminton women’s singles champion. 2024.8.5 Paris = Olympic Photo Joint Reporter/TAK Reporter Hwang Jin-hwan
Korean badminton women’s singles star Ahn Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance) marched powerfully toward conquering the summit for the first time in an international competition since the Paris Olympics.
Ahn Se-young defeated Japan’s Tomoka Miyazaki 2-0 (21-5 22-20) in the women’s singles semifinals of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 750 China Masters held at Shenzhen Arena, China on the 23rd. World No. 1 Ahn Se-young easily defeated 14th-ranked Miyazaki in 42 minutes.
In the finals on the 24th, Ahn Se-young will clash with 28th-ranked Gao Fangjie (China) for the championship. Gao Fangjie defeated world number 10 Supanida Katetong (Thailand) in the semifinals.
If Ahn Se-young surpasses Gao Fang-jie, she will win her first international trophy since the Paris Olympics. Ahn Se-young rehabilitated for about two months due to an injury after winning the women’s singles gold medal at the Paris Olympics. Ahn Se-young, who later returned to competition at the National Sports Festival, competed in international competitions at the Denmark Open last month and took second place.
Immediately after winning the gold medal at the Paris Olympics, Ahn Se-young criticized the Korea Badminton Association and the management of the national team in an interview. It is said that the right knee injury suffered at last year’s Hangzhou Asian Games was not properly managed, and participation in the competition was unreasonable. The issue of improving treatment, such as allowing individual sponsorship, was also raised. Since then, Ahn Se-young has been selectively participating in international competitions to manage injuries.
