"Where Did the Photo of Gold Medalist An Se-young Go?"... Netizens Criticize Badminton Association's SNS

"Even Amid Conflict, Basics Must Be Respected" Netizens Criticize
Only An Se-young's Award Ceremony Photos Missing on SNS

Following An Se-young's determined remarks after winning the women's singles gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, netizens have been continuously criticizing the Badminton Korea Association. On the 5th, An Se-young defeated He Bingjiao (China) 2-0 in the women's badminton singles final held at the Porte de la Chapelle arena in Paris, France, securing the Olympic singles gold medal in badminton for the first time in 28 years.

On the 5th (local time), at the Porte de la Chapelle Arena in Paris, France, An Se-young of Korea, who defeated China's He Bingjiao in the women's singles badminton final of the 2024 Paris Olympics, is holding up the gold medal.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On that day, the Badminton Korea Association posted on their Facebook and Instagram, stating, "The badminton queen reached the top in Paris, ending with a romantic finale." Along with this, they also shared a graphic recording the final match results. However, posts featuring scenes from An Se-young's final match, the gold medal ceremony, or photos of her wearing the gold medal after the awards ceremony were not uploaded. Only a short video congratulating An Se-young on winning the women's singles gold medal for the first time in 28 years was posted on Instagram the day before, on the 6th. Meanwhile, the Badminton Korea Association's Facebook page featured a notice related to career education from the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee instead of photos of An Se-young's gold medal.

Only a short video along with a congratulatory message for An Se-young winning the gold medal on the 6th, just a day ago, was posted on Instagram. Meanwhile, on the Korea Badminton Association's Facebook page, instead of a photo of An Se-young's gold medal, there is a notice related to career education from the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee.
[Photo by Korea Badminton Association Instagram]

This sharply contrasts with previous posts when An Se-young celebrated her victories, such as beating Indonesia's Tunjung in the semifinals or defeating Japan's Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals, where photos of her enjoying the wins were uploaded. Additionally, when Kim Won-ho and Jung Na-eun won the silver medal in mixed doubles, photos from the awards ceremony were posted, along with selfies with players from other countries on Instagram.

In response, netizens expressed various opinions such as, "Even if there is conflict with the athlete, basic respect should be maintained. It seems like an emotional reaction," "It's petty. And yet they call themselves an association," "I wonder who the association exists for," "The absence of gold medal ceremony photos is suspicious timing," "Isn't this too blatant?" and "No matter what, there should be a clear distinction between public and private matters."

This is in stark contrast to the photos posted earlier, such as those of An Se-young enjoying her victory after defeating Indonesia's Tunjung in the semifinals or beating Japan's Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals. Additionally, when Kim Won-ho and Jung Na-eun won the silver medal in mixed doubles, photos from the award ceremony were posted, along with selfies taken with players from other countries on Instagram.
[Photo by Korea Badminton Association Instagram]

Earlier, on the 5th, An Se-young criticized the association during an interview after the awards ceremony, mentioning negligence in athlete injury management, which cooled the celebratory atmosphere following her gold medal win. The next day, on the 6th, at the badminton medalists' press conference held at the Korea House of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee in Maison de la Chimie, Paris, neither An Se-young nor association officials appeared. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has begun investigating the facts and circumstances related to An Se-young's criticism. The ministry stated, "We will review the necessity of appropriate improvement measures based on the results."

Meanwhile, Kim Taek-gyu, president of the Badminton Korea Association, regarding the issues raised by An Se-young (Samsung Life) who won the women's singles gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, said, "There was no conflict between the Badminton Association and An Se-young. We will look into the misdiagnosis of the injury." On the morning of the 7th, around 8:30 a.m., after returning through Incheon International Airport, he met with reporters and was asked, "As the president, what are your thoughts on An Se-young's remarks?" He replied, "It is emotionally painful. It seems like the association has done a lot wrong, but there will be many parts to understand when you see the press release to be distributed this afternoon."

On the 7th, Kim Taek-gyu, President of the Badminton Korea Association, was seen exiting the arrival hall at Incheon Airport. President Kim, who accompanied the Paris Olympics delegation, returned earlier than the athletes.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

When asked why the related issues were not resolved before the Olympics, he said, "There was no conflict between me and the athlete, or between the association and the athlete." He added, "(An Se-young) has properly carried out her athletic career. We will investigate only the part regarding the misdiagnosis of the injury and distribute a press release." Regarding An Se-young's statement that she cannot be with the national team, he briefly said, "We will also check that. Why she said such a thing."