Olympics Taegeuk Warriors Go, 'Badminton Queen' Ahn Se-young

The youngest player in badminton 3 years ago… Now the world’s No. 1 player, Challenging for the first gold medal in singles in 28 years since Bang Soo-hyun… Knee pain is the key.

'Badminton Queen' Ahn Se-young (22, Samsung Life Insurance) will return to the Olympic court with a completely different status in three years.

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held in 2021, Ahn Se-young was the youngest player in badminton at the age of 19.

Before she could fully bloom, Ahn Se-young lost to the number 1 seed of the tournament, Chen Yufei (China), and was eliminated in the quarterfinals.

Ahn Se-young, who could not hold back tears, said, "I prepared without regrets and this is the result.

I have to prepare harder." 파워볼게임

Three years have passed since then.

Ahn Se-young’s status ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics is a world of difference.

Last year, Ahn Se-young won 10 international competitions, was runner-up three times, and won the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Female Player of the Year award.

Every step she takes has left a big mark on the history of Korean badminton.

Last March, she won the gold medal in the women's singles for the first time in 27 years at the All England Open, the most prestigious badminton tournament, and in July, she overtook Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) to become the world's number one ranking player.

In August, she made history by becoming the first Korean singles player to win the World Individual Championships, and about a month later, she won two gold medals in the women's singles and women's team events at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.

Both gold medals were a feat that was achieved for the first time in 29 years since the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games.

However, Ahn Se-young's race to prepare for her second Olympics was not smooth.

The knee she injured during the Hangzhou Asian Games gold medal finals has been bothering her throughout.

She was initially diagnosed with a short two-week rehabilitation and thought she would avoid a major injury, but the re-examination results showed that she would have to compete in the Olympics with pain.

Ahn Se-young, who suffered from chronic pain and lost stamina during the rehabilitation period, has shown ups and downs like a roller coaster this year.

After winning the Malaysian Open in January, she withdrew from the quarterfinals of the India Open the following week due to a thigh muscle injury, and in March, she won the French Open and entered the All England Open, but was eliminated in the semifinals due to poor stamina.

However, last year's Ahn Se-young was just too strong, and this year's Ahn Se-young is still a strong gold medal candidate.

Among the top 5 in the world rankings, Ahn Se-young has won the most international competitions (3 times) along with Carolina Marin (Spain).

Chen Yu-fei and Tai Tzu-ying (Taiwan) have won once each, and Yamaguchi has only finished as runner-up twice.

In addition, Ahn Se-young won and finished as runner-up at the Singapore Open and Indonesia Open last month, which were preliminary matches for the Olympics.

This was the first time Ahn Se-young has advanced to the finals of an international competition for two consecutive weeks since returning from injury.

A factor in Ahn Se-young's rebound is her successful adoption of an aggressive game management style.

Previously, Ahn Se-young had suffocated her opponents with her tireless stamina and wide defensive range, but now she is trying to play the game efficiently by mixing in precise and sharp attacks.

This is to shorten the game time as her knees are not good, and to exploit the weaknesses of her competitors who have studied her.

This competition is effectively the last puzzle piece of the 'Grand Slam' that Ahn Se-young has set as her career goal.

After winning the World Individual Championships last year, Ahn Se-young set the Grand Slam (Olympic Games, World Championships, Asian Games, Asian Championships) as her personal goal, and by winning the Asian Games a month later, she achieved half of the four competitions.

Of the two remaining competitions, the Olympics, an international comprehensive competition held every four years, is by far the most difficult.

The Asian Individual Championships are held every year.

The first and last time a Korean badminton player won a gold medal in the women's singles at the Olympics was Bang Soo-hyun at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

Ahn Se-young expressed her determination at the badminton national team media day last month, saying, "I'm just going to watch the Olympics.

I plan to give it my all at the Paris Olympics."

She added, "In Paris, I want to show my ceremonies often with a smile rather than crying."