South Korea Sweeps Women’s Singles and Doubles Titles at Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games
South Korea’s badminton delegation claimed two gold titles on Oct. 29 at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, anchored by women’s singles world No. 1 An Se-young and women’s doubles pairing Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na at the Ichinomiya General Gymnasium in Japan. An secured her second Asian Games singles crown by defeating Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi in straight games, while Lee and Baek triumphed over China’s Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning in a three-game final to capture South Korea’s first women’s doubles gold at the tournament in 24 years.
An Se-young Claims Historic Singles Defense
World No. 1 An Se-young captured the women’s singles gold medal by defeating Japan’s world No. 3 Akane Yamaguchi 2-0 (21-17, 21-9) in the final at Ichinomiya General Gymnasium. According to tournament records, An is the first player to achieve back-to-back victories in women’s singles since badminton became a regular Asian Games sport at the 1962 Jakarta edition.
An maintained a flawless run throughout the tournament, dropping zero games across five matches starting from her 32nd-round fixture against Kazakhstan’s Kamila Smagulova. “I simply played with the mindset of wanting to win, and winning is always overwhelming,” An said. She added that her focus remains entirely on immediate challenges, stating that she has no regrets about her performance on the court.
Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na End a 24-Year Doubles Drought
In the women’s doubles final, world No. 2 pair Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na defeated China’s top-ranked Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning 2-1 (28-26, 18-21, 18-21) to secure the nation’s first gold medal in the discipline since Lee Kyung-won and Ra Kyung-min won at the 2002 Busan Asian Games. The victory also marked a celebratory moment with national team coach Lee Kyung-won, who was part of the last South Korean pair to win the event.
“I’ve come to realize anew how incredible our coach is, and it’s an honor to walk that same path,” Baek said following the win. The match proved demanding after Lee and Baek dropped a closely contested first game 26-28 following multiple deuces, having suffered multiple deuces in the first game. Adjusting their strategy in the subsequent games to exploit defensive openings, the South Korean duo rallied to take the final two games. Following the victory, Baek carried Lee on her back in a celebratory piggyback ceremony, noting that despite physical fatigue, she was deeply happy to share the moment with her partner.
Tournament Wrap-Up for South Korea’s Badminton Squad
The women’s singles and doubles finals concluded South Korea’s badminton schedule at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. The national team finished the competition with a total of five medals, consisting of two golds and three bronzes, with no silver medals recorded. Earlier in the tournament schedule, the squad earned a bronze in the women’s team event on Oct. 23, followed by bronze medals in both the men’s singles and doubles competitions on Oct. 28.
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