Ahn Se-young: China Disputes Badminton Player of the Year Claim

[스포티비뉴스=장하준 기자] Ahn Se-young (23, Samsung Life Insurance), world number one in badminton women’s singles, stood in the middle of an unexpected controversy ahead of the announcement of the BWF Player of the Year award. Although he is evaluated as the most likely candidate for the award after dominating the season, the attention of the badminton world is flowing in a confusing direction as claims are raised, mainly in the Chinese media, that “the award is not confirmed.”

China’s ‘Sina Sports’ recently reported, “Ahn Se-young cannot necessarily be considered to receive the Player of the Year award.” He then added, “Akane Yamaguchi (Japan), who won the gold medal at the World Championships, can easily take home the award.” There has been a series of surprising reactions from the badminton community, given that this is a claim made by an absolute powerhouse who maintained the top ranking throughout the season and set a historic record of winning 10 times.

If we only look at objective indicators, comparing competitive structures is meaningless. Ahn Se-young swept a total of 10 tournaments this year, including the Super 1000 Malaysia, All England, and Indonesia Opens, the Super 750 Japan, Denmark, and French Opens, and the Australian Open and Orleans Masters. This is the first time in women’s singles history that 10 trophies have been lifted in a season. In women’s singles, the records for the most wins in a season and the most wins in a season were all rewritten under the name of Ahn Se-young.

However, the Chinese media suggested the possibility of winning the award based on the fact that “Yamaguchi is a world championship gold medalist.” The influence of the World Championships accounts for the highest proportion of BWF evaluation factors, and the method of selecting the Player of the Year Award is not determined solely by performance.

BWF determines the winners based on 52-week ranking points and voting scores from major competitions such as the World Tour Finals and World Championships. In particular, double points are applied to the World Tour Finals and World Championships. Although Ahn Se-young won most competitions, the fact that she did not reach the top in these two stages is pointed out as an obstacle.

Domestic fans are expressing their uncomfortable views regarding this. A representative response is, “It is contradictory in itself that a person who has won 10 crowns in the season, is ranked No. 1 in the world, and holds the record for the most wins is mentioned as an object of ‘award competition.’” The fans’ logic is clear. It is argued that even if Yamaguchi won the world championship, he cannot be compared to Ahn Se-young in terms of overall season performance.

In the end, the results of this award are expected to be a test to see what the BWF award system is based on, not simply who receives the award. The world’s attention is focused on whether to evaluate the overall dominance of the season or to prioritize the weight of specific, highly symbolic competitions.

The answer will be revealed in Hangzhou on the 15th. If Ahn Se-young wins the award, it will be the world’s official recognition for the ‘best season of all time’. Conversely, if the award is not awarded, the controversy surrounding the evaluation criteria is expected to grow further.