Face off with China in the finals… The men’s national team suffered a painful upset loss to China in the semifinals.
[AP=연합뉴스]
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Oh Myeong-eon = Even with ‘the world’s strongest’ Ahn Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance) taking a break, the Korean women’s national team advanced to the finals of the 2026 Asian Men’s and Women’s Team Badminton Championships, leaving them just one step away from winning their first ever championship.
The women’s badminton team defeated Indonesia 3-1 in the semifinals of the tournament held at the Konson Gymnasium in Qingdao, China on the 7th.
On this day, Ahn Se-young was not included in the list for physical strength reasons, and the even performance of her teammates shone.
In the first women’s singles match, Kim Ga-eun (Samsung Life Insurance, world ranking 17th) took the lead by beating Talitha Ramadani Wiriyawan (67th) 2-0 (21-4 21-5), and in the doubles, Baek Ha-na (Incheon International Airport) and Kim Hye-jung (Samsung Life Insurance) defeated the Rachel Alesia Rose-Pevi Setianinglum group 2-0 (21-14). 21-10) and won the game.
In singles, Park Ga-eun (Gimcheon City Hall, 70th place) lost 0-2 (14-21 13-21) to Ni Kadek Dinda Amartya Pratiwi (67th place) and faltered for a while, but in doubles, Seojin Lee (Incheon International Airport) and Yeonwoo Lee (Samsung Life Insurance) team defeated Amalia Chahaya Pratiwi and City Padia Silva Ramadapanthi. By defeating the team 2-0 (21-19 21-19), Korea secured a ticket to the finals.
Korea, which defeated Singapore (5-0 wins) and Chinese Taipei (4-1 wins) in the group stage and defeated Malaysia 3-0 in the quarterfinals, has already secured the right to participate in the World Women’s Team Championship (Uber Cup) to be held in Denmark in April.
This competition, held every two years, is the most prestigious team event in Asia and also serves as an Asian qualifier for the World Team Championships. Teams that advance to the semifinals or higher will be given the right to advance to the finals.
Korea will compete with China for the championship trophy in the final.
The Korean women’s national team’s best performance in this competition was runner-up in 2020 and 2022. If they overcome China’s wall on the 8th, they will reach the top of the Asian team competition for the first time in history.
The Korean men’s national team suffered a painful 2-3 loss to China in the semifinals, preventing them from advancing to the finals.
While Seo Seung-jae (Samsung Life Insurance), who was grouped with Kim Won-ho and ranked first in the world, left the team, Korea predicted an upset by winning the first two games.
Yoo Tae-bin (Gimcheon City Hall, 74th place) defeated Wang Zhengxing (30th place) 2-1 (21-19 16-21 21-13), and Kim Won-ho, who teamed up with Jin Yong (Yonex), was also on the verge of victory by defeating the Chinese powerhouse He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu 2-0 (21-15 21-17).
However, starting with Choi Ji-hoon (Samsung Life Insurance), Cho Song-hyeon (Gwangju Bank), Ki Dong-ju (Incheon International Airport), and Cho Hyeon-woo (Gimcheon City Hall) all bowed out in a 0-2 loss.
Although they failed to advance to the finals, the men’s national team secured a spot in the finals of the World Men’s Team Championship (Thomas Cup) held in Denmark thanks to their performance in the semifinals of this tournament.
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Sent on February 7, 2026 at 23:43
