Korea's An Se-young Leads Badminton Team Aiming for Best Asian Games Finish in 24 Years

Korea's badminton team, led by the reigning "Queen of Shuttlecock" An Se-young, is set to pursue its best performance at the Asian Games in 24 years.

Under the guidance of coach Park Joo-bong, the Korean badminton team will compete in seven events, including men's and women's team competitions and five individual events, at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games starting on September 19.

The Asian Games have been a stage of ups and downs for Korean badminton. Winning a gold medal in badminton at the Asian Games is considered as challenging as at the Olympics, given the strong competition from countries like China, Japan, and Indonesia.

Since the mid-1980s, Korea has begun to break through the formidable wall of China, which was the top Asian team at the time. The country enjoyed a golden era until the early 2000s, sweeping four gold medals at both the 1994 Hiroshima Games and the 2002 Busan Games. The Busan Games marked Korea's best-ever performance, with four golds, two silvers, and three bronzes.

However, the following years saw a decline. Korea missed out on gold at the 2006 Doha Games and managed only one gold at both the 2010 Guangzhou and 2014 Incheon Games. The 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games were particularly disappointing, as Korea left without any medals, marking the first time since the 1978 Bangkok Games that the country finished without a medal.

The tide turned at the 2022 Hangzhou Games held in 2023, where Korea secured medals in all seven events, winning two golds, two silvers, and three bronzes, marking the best performance since the 2002 Busan Games. This momentum continued into the 2024 Paris Olympics, where Korea won one gold and one silver, achieving its best results since the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

At the 2026 BWF World Championships held last month in New Delhi, Korea reached the podium in three of the five individual events. An Se-young claimed the women's singles title, and the women's doubles team surprised everyone with a gold medal. The men's doubles team, a strong contender for gold, secured a bronze medal.

With this positive trend in international competitions, Korea aims to surpass its performance at the Hangzhou Games in the upcoming Asian Games. Given their strong lineup, there are expectations that they could match or exceed their record of four gold medals.

Leading the charge for gold is An Se-young. The world No. 1 in women's singles has achieved a Grand Slam, winning the Hangzhou Asian Games, the 2023 World Championships, the 2024 Paris Olympics, and the Asian Championships in April, making her the first Korean female player to do so.

This season, An's performance has been exceptional. Since her loss in the finals of the All England Open in March, she has gone on a 33-match winning streak, claiming victory in ten tournaments, including team events. Her record this season stands at 49 wins and one loss, maintaining a remarkable 98% win rate, surpassing her previous record of 94.8% (72 wins, 4 losses) set last year.

Her victories have come across various prestigious tournaments, including the Malaysia Open, India Open, Asian Championships, Singapore Open, and Indonesia Open. After missing the Japan Open and China Open due to injury, she returned to the World Championships and claimed the title.

On September 6, An achieved her third consecutive title at the 2026 BWF World Tour China Masters (Super 750) in women's singles, defeating Japan's world No. 9, Miyazaki Tomoka, 2-0 (21-17, 21-6) in the final. She has not dropped a single game in her last two tournaments.

In both the semifinals and finals, An faced Japanese opponents. She defeated world No. 3 Yamaguchi Akane in the semifinals to reach the final. With the Asian Games being held in Japan, both players are seen as key competitors. An's head-to-head record against Yamaguchi now stands at 21 wins and 15 losses, with An winning the last seven encounters. She remains undefeated against Miyazaki in eight matches.

After winning the women's team gold medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, An also claimed the women's singles title by defeating China's Chen Yufei, becoming a double champion. This marked the first women's singles gold medal for Korea in 29 years since Bang Soo-hyun won in 1994.

If she wins again at this tournament, An will make history by becoming the first Korean woman to win back-to-back titles in women's singles at the Asian Games. The last consecutive wins in the same event at the Asian Games were achieved by the mixed doubles pair Kim Dong-moon and Ra Kyung-min in 1998 and 2002. If the women's team also wins, it would mark two consecutive double championships.

The women's team, led by An, is also in high spirits. Earlier this year, they won their first-ever title at the Asian Team Championships and claimed the Uber Cup, the women's team equivalent of the World Championships, in May. An recorded an impressive 8-0 win-loss record in both tournaments.

In women's doubles, the duo of Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na, ranked No. 2 in the world, are strong contenders for gold. They broke a five-match losing streak by defeating the world No. 1 pair Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning from China in the finals of the World Championships last month. This marked the first time in 31 years that a Korean women's doubles team has won the World Championships since Gil Young-a and Jang Hye-ok in 1995.

The Liu and Tan pair had previously defeated Korean teams in all five encounters this year, making the victory in the World Championships final particularly significant.

Lee and Baek have shown strength on the big stage, winning back-to-back titles at the World Tour Finals last December and adding the World Championships trophy to their collection about eight months later. This season, they also earned silver medals at the Malaysia Open and All England Open, and a bronze at the India Open. At the Hangzhou Games, they reached the women's doubles final for the first time since the 2002 Busan Games, securing a silver medal.

Upon returning to Incheon International Airport after the World Championships on August 25, Lee expressed to reporters, "We defeated an opponent we had never beaten this year in the World Championships final, which gives us hope for the upcoming Asian Games." Baek added, "Winning the gold medal made it feel like we were in a major tournament, and I believe we can compete with more confidence next time."

The world No. 6 pair of Kim Hye-jeong and Gong Hee-yong also contributed by winning their first title of the season at the Japan Open. However, Gong's injury poses a challenge. The pair did not compete in the World Championships or the China Masters to focus on recovery and preparation for the Asian Games.

In contrast, the men's doubles team faces challenges as they head into the Asian Games. The world No. 1 pair Seo Seung-jae and Kim Won-ho suffered a surprising defeat in the round of 32 at the China Masters on September 1, losing 0-2 (19-21, 19-21) to the world No. 58 pair Leo Rolly Carnando and Daniel Martin from Indonesia. This marked their first round of 32 exit since forming the pair in January last year, excluding withdrawals due to injury.

The match was disappointing, as they led 19-16 in the first game but then made several errors, allowing their opponents to score five consecutive points. In the second game, they seemed to regain momentum with four consecutive points after trailing 11-12, but quickly lost five points in a row.

This year has been markedly different from last year. Seo and Kim achieved a record 11 tournament victories last year, tying for the most wins in a single season alongside An Se-young. They started this year strong, winning the Malaysia Open, All England Open, and Asian Championships in succession.

However, they have not added any trophies since then, only securing two silver medals and three bronze medals in recent tournaments. They finished as runners-up at the Japan Open and China Open, and at the World Championships, they were eliminated in the semifinals by the world No. 4 pair Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik from Malaysia, settling for a bronze medal.

Despite the challenges, they have maintained their position as world No. 1, holding the top ranking for 59 consecutive weeks.

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