An Se-young in action during the Denmark Open women’s singles final against Wang Zhiyi of China at the Arena Fyn in Denmark on Sunday. [AP/YONHAP]
Olympic badminton gold medalist An Se-young lost the Denmark Open women’s singles final 2-0 to Wang Zhiyi of China on Sunday, missing out on her first international tournament win since the Olympics in Paris.
An struggled against Wang at Arena Fyn in Denmark, losing the first game 21-10 and the second game 21-12.
In badminton, the first player to win two games in a best-of-five format secures the match victory.
Sunday’s loss comes two months after An topped the podium in the women’s singles event at the Paris Olympics, where she earned the highest honor after a medal-rich career, which includes multiple international titles from the Asian Games and World Championships.
“I was unable to prepare much due to rehabilitation after the Olympics, but I was happy to be with Korean badminton fans upon my return to the court. I was able to come back thanks to their cheers and support,” An said Sunday in a statement posted on her Instagram account.
An was not required to wear Yonex shoes provided through the Badminton Korea Association (BKA)’s sponsorship deal for the Denmark Open, as the association temporarily allowed her to wear her own shoes after she reported that the Yonex shoes gave her blisters.
After her Olympic gold win, An accused the BKA of mishandling players’ injuries and exercising excessive control over national team players.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism then launched an investigation into the BKA and discovered that the association had a rule forcing national team players to use equipment designated by it, even though shoes and rackets significantly impact players’ performance.
The BKA said earlier this month that it would temporarily allow An to wear her own shoes, but did not clarify whether it plans to permanently scrap the rule.
BY PAIK JI-HWAN [[email protected]]
