▲ On the 21st, when the 7-day ‘2026 National Badminton Team Selection Tournament’ was held in the new and old buildings of Sangju Indoor Gymnasium, 115 players from all over the country entered into fierce competition. Provided by Sangju City
The competition for the 2026 Korean badminton national team Taegeuk mark took place in Sangju.
Sangju City announced on the 23rd that it had entered into fierce competition by holding the ‘2026 Badminton National Team Selection Tournament’ in the new and old indoor gymnasium for 7 days from the 21st to the 27th.
A total of 115 players from all over the country participated in this selection event, hosted by the Korea Badminton Association and organized by the Sangju Badminton Association.
A total of 38 national players, including 7 each in men’s and women’s singles and 12 in men’s and women’s doubles, will be selected, and it is expected to be filled with the sweat and cheers of players trying to cross the threshold to the national team.
Ahn Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance), who represents Korea’s badminton, and top-ranked player Shim Yu-jin (Incheon International Airport Skymons) have already been selected first for the national team and will not participate in this selection match. Instead, it was expected that it would be a stage where a large number of next-generation runners and mid-level players would participate and gauge the trend of generational change.
An official from the competition said, “This selection match is an opportunity to check how much new players who are competitive in international competitions have grown,” and added, “As the selection of the representative depends on each game and each rally, the concentration of the players is quite high.”
The reason Sangju was selected as the venue for the national team selection competition was its steady operation of sports infrastructure and administrative support.
Last August, Sangju City hosted a summer training camp for national badminton team candidates, and about 60 people, including coaches and players, stayed for two weeks.
During this period, the athletes used local lodging and restaurants and were evaluated to have had a positive effect on the local economy.
A leader who participated in the field training at the time said, “It was a place with stable accessibility, lodging conditions, and movement routes,” and “In particular, the two indoor gymnasiums were adjacent, so it was an environment where the players could focus only on training.”
Sangju City plans to use this competition as an opportunity to continue to expand the attraction of national sports competitions and field training, and to create a virtuous cycle that leads to the revitalization of local commerce and tourism through stay-at-home sports marketing.
Choi Han-young, head of the Saemaul Sports Department, said, “It is meaningful to welcome national team candidates who will lead the future of badminton in Korea to Sangju,” and added, “We will spare no effort in providing administrative and facility support so that all players can play in the best condition.”
