An Se-young Expresses Feelings on 'Olympic Resolute Remarks'... "I Do Not Regret"

"I Want to Become a Badminton Legend Player"

Immediately after winning the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, An Se-young, who made candid remarks about the national team's injury management, said she "does not regret" her decision at the time.

In a video posted on June 17 on the official YouTube channel of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), An Se-young opened up about her true feelings regarding the situation following the Paris Olympics. She said, "At that time, I was answering questions from reporters, and I felt like I became the person pointing out the problems, so it was a difficult time for me. Rather than calling them problems, I thought that if the shortcomings were improved, things could move in a better direction, so I spoke up, and whether I won or lost, I think I would have said it anyway." She added, "Honestly, I did not expect my words to cause such a big stir, but I do not deeply regret giving that answer." She also shared, "It was a bit tough, but I received a lot of support and was able to get back on my feet, so I was okay."

Ahn Se-young, who won the women's singles badminton gold at this year's Paris Olympics, is performing a shuttlecock toss before the women's professional basketball game between Samsung Life and Hana Bank held on the 1st of last month at the Yongin Indoor Gymnasium in Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Samsung Life Bloomings, Yonhap News Agency

An Se-young also expressed some regret about not being able to fully enjoy the joy of winning at the Olympics. She said, "After winning a medal at the Olympics, I received more criticism than congratulations. So it is disappointing, but since I created that situation... I don't know. I was okay in my own way." Regarding her next goal, she stated, "I want to enjoy badminton. I just want to have fun playing each match and perform well. I want to become a legend in badminton," showing her determination.

Earlier, after winning the women's singles badminton event at the Paris Olympics this year, An Se-young said at a press conference, "My injury was more serious than expected, and I was quite disappointed with the national team for being too complacent. At that moment, I thought it might be difficult to continue with the national team." This appears to be a critique of the process in which she injured her knee during the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games final and the national team's response afterward. An Se-young suffered a knee injury in the Asian Games final against Chen Yufei (China) in October last year and faced difficulties preparing for the Olympics. Subsequently, issues regarding the national team selection process and personal sponsorship also surfaced, leading the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to conduct an audit of the Badminton Korea Association.

Meanwhile, on June 9, An Se-young received the 'Player of the Year' award (female player of the year) for the second consecutive year, selected by the BWF, and was also chosen as the 'Players' Player of the Year' (female player of the year selected by fellow players).