An Se-young, the world No. 1 in women's singles badminton, made a triumphant return to the top of the world stage by winning the 2026 BWF World Championships in New Delhi, India, on August 23. She defeated world No. 2 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in straight sets, 21-17, 21-14, to claim the gold medal.
This victory marks An's second world championship title, having first won in Copenhagen in 2023. The tournament was not held in 2024 due to the Paris Olympics, and last year, An reached the semifinals in Paris but settled for a bronze medal after losing to China's Chen Yufei.
Winning this title is particularly significant for An, as it comes just a month after recovering from an injury. She experienced pain in her left foot during the Japan Open (Super 750) in July, which forced her to withdraw from the round of 16. She then focused on rehabilitation and did not compete in the China Open (Super 1000).
In the championship, An completed all six of her matches with a perfect score of 2-0. She defeated players including Gabriela de Souza of Bulgaria (ranked 40th), Wiyahwa of Indonesia (ranked 53rd), and Blikfeldt of Denmark (ranked 16th) in the earlier rounds. In the quarterfinals, she overcame China's Han Yue (ranked 5th) and defeated world No. 3 Wang Zhi Yi of China in the semifinals, 24-22, 21-16.
The final match lasted 49 minutes. The first game was tightly contested until it was tied at 17-17, when An scored four consecutive points to win 21-17. The second game was also close at 7-7, but An pulled ahead with four straight points to lead 11-7. She secured match point at 20-14 and closed out the match by forcing an error from Yamaguchi.
With this victory, An improved her head-to-head record against Yamaguchi to 20 wins and 15 losses, extending her winning streak to six matches against her.
An is set to compete in the China Masters (Super 750) from September 1 to 6, followed by the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games from September 19 to October 4. She aims to defend her singles and team titles, having won gold in both events at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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