Team Korea looks to bring back badminton glory days at Asiad

An Se-young in action during a match at the Daihatsu Indonesia Masters BWF World Tour 2023 on Jan. 29. [BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION]

The Korean badminton team is looking to revive its former glory by winning medals at the upcoming 2022 Asian Games.

Korea failed to win a single medal in badminton in the previous Asiad for the first time in 40 years.

“We will prepare meticulously in order to regain our glory in badminton,” the team’s head coach Kim Hak-kyun said at a sponsorship event between the Badminton Korea Association and Yonex at Seoul Olympic Parktel in Songpa District, southern Seoul on Wednesday.

The players had more time to prepare for the Asiad since it was postponed for a year due to a surge of Covid-19 cases in China.

The team’s ace An Se-young, in particular is expected to maintain the momentum she has been riding in recent international tournaments. An won the Badminton World Federation’s Indonesia Masters last month after winning the India Open a week earlier.

“Trying my best is what I have to do as a player. I will pay back with good results,” An said.

Meanwhile, having signed a contract last November, head coach Kim’s time with the Korean national team runs through the 2024 Paris Olympics. The 2022 Asiad in September this year in Hangzhou, China will serve as an opportunity for Kim to prove his potential ahead of the bigger event.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]