Source: REUTERS/Ann Wang
[Saba Sports News] An Se-young, the talented young girl from Korea, won the gold medal in the women’s singles badminton event at the 2024 Olympic Games. In a post on social media, she revealed that after injuring her knee at the Asian Games last year, the Korean Badminton Association forced her to compete despite her health condition, leading to the worsening of her knee injury due to misdiagnosis. Furthermore, her personal coach was not allowed to accompany her at this year’s Olympics. Under pressure from public opinion, An Se-young was forced to post a black photo on Instagram and publicly apologize. She expressed deep remorse and guilt for her comments, especially towards fellow athletes who were competing in the Olympics. It was later revealed that in January this year, An Se-young had sent a retirement request letter to the Korean Badminton Association, which even caught the attention of the South Korean presidential office. However, due to preparations for the Olympics, she decided against retiring. Yesterday, there was a new development in the An Se-young incident as the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that they will initiate an investigation into the Korean Badminton Association. The investigation will not only focus on An Se-young’s injury treatment and forced participation but also examine the controversial policies and the execution and operation of financial subsidies provided by the association. It is reported that the Ministry provided a subsidy of $5.21 million to the Korean Badminton Association in 2024, and they suspect the association’s senior officials of illegal misappropriation of funds. The Ministry will gather opinions from the Korean Badminton Association and national team members, conduct on-site verification and expert consultations, and plan to announce the investigation results next month.