2024 Paris Olympic women's badminton gold medalist An Se-young became the first Korean player to win the women's singles title twice at the prestigious All England Open.
On the 17th (Korean time), An Se-young defeated world No. 2 Wang Zhiyi of China 2-1 (13-21, 21-18, 21-18) in the women's singles final of the BWF World Tour Super 1000 All England Open held in Birmingham, UK, to claim the championship.
An Se-young first won the All England Open women's singles title in 2023, the first Korean to do so in 27 years since Bang Soo-hyun in 1996, and reclaimed the throne after two years. She is the first Korean player, male or female, to win the women's singles title twice at the All England Open. Before An Se-young, Hwang Sun-ae (1981), Kim Yeon-ja (1986), and Bang Soo-hyun (1996) won the women's singles title. No Korean player has yet won the men's singles title.
On the 17th (Korean time), An Se-young sealed her victory in the women's singles at the BWF World Tour Super 1000 All England Open held in Birmingham, UK, and is seen kissing the trophy. Photo by AP Yonhap News
An Se-young advanced to the final by consecutively defeating Gao Fangjie (China, 15th) in the round of 32, Kirsty Gilmour (Scotland, 33rd) in the round of 16, Chen Yufei (China, 13th) in the quarterfinals, and Akane Yamaguchi (Japan, 3rd) in the semifinals. She won the quarterfinal and semifinal matches without dropping a set. However, she complained of thigh pain during the second game of the semifinal against Yamaguchi and played the final against Wang Zhiyi with her thigh taped.
Possibly due to the thigh pain, An Se-young struggled in the final. While she finished the quarterfinal and semifinal matches in 43 and 48 minutes respectively, the final lasted 1 hour and 35 minutes.
An Se-young started the final shakily, losing the first game 13-21 by a large margin.
She also struggled in the early stages of the second game. At one point in the middle, she trailed 10-13 but persistently caught up to tie at 17-17, then scored three consecutive points from 18-18 to close out the game. The final third game was a fierce battle. An Se-young led 7-3 early on but allowed a 9-9 tie and fell behind 14-16. However, she then scored four consecutive points to seize the momentum and from an 18-18 tie, scored another three consecutive points to finish the match.
An Se-young demonstrated her world-class dominance once again by achieving her fourth consecutive international tournament victory and 20-match winning streak this year, following wins at the Malaysia Open, India Open, and Orl?ans Masters.
The All England Open, which began in 1899, is the oldest and most prestigious badminton tournament in the world. Before the BWF established the World Championships in 1977, it was regarded as the de facto world championship.
An Se-young first reached the top of the All England Open in 2023 and lost 1-2 to Yamaguchi in the semifinals last year.
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