Olympic badminton champion Ahn criticizes federation, denies retirement rumors

A day after shocking South Koreans with her outspoken criticism of the country’s badminton authorities, Ahn Se-young said Tuesday that her remarks did not necessarily imply she would retire and that she simply wanted the national team to manage its players better.

“Please don’t twist my words with the term ‘retirement’. I just hope there are people who can think about what I have to say and start solving these problems,” the 22-year-old said on her Instagram account, regarding her comment during the post-match interview after the women’s singles badminton final at the Paris Olympics.

“I just wanted to talk about how players should be protected and managed, and discuss the importance of communication over authority. I am very disappointed that my comments were turned into inflammatory headlines,” she wrote in the post. “This is a conversation about protecting athletes, not waging war on anyone.”

Ahn, the current No. 1 in the Badminton World Federation’s women’s singles rankings, had harsh words for the national team and its system after beating China’s He Bingjiao to give the country its first Olympic gold medal in badminton singles for either gender since 1996.

She said her injury last year was more serious than expected, but the national team did not take it seriously. Ahn said it was a disappointment, adding that “it might be difficult to continue with the national team after this point.”

Ahn’s recent comments were widely interpreted as a hint at her retirement from international competition, which she denied in an Instagram post. But local media reported that the athlete had threatened to withdraw from the national team as recently as May.

In an Instagram post, Ahn said she was once again hurt by articles citing comments from the Korea Badminton Association and “the coach” — she did not specify who. It is unclear which articles or comments Ahn was referring to, but national team head coach Kim Hak-kyun said her comments appeared to hint at “legal battles with the association.”

Kim said he persuaded Ahn to compete in the Paris Olympics when she wanted to quit and that he had been expecting such comments from her since last year. He stressed that the complaints were aimed at the federation, not him, and that he had a good relationship with Ahn.

Ahn calls for overhaul of national team system

Ahn’s comments suggest problems with the BKA’s handling of the knee injury she suffered at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year on her way to winning gold in the women’s individual event. A misdiagnosis reportedly forced her to play in pain for weeks, and the injury took longer to heal than initially expected.

But Ahn stressed that her problems with the association ran deeper than its alleged mishandling of the injury, saying she hoped the national team would develop players “in a more systematic way.”

In an interview with local Yonhap News, she said singles and doubles were clearly different and players had to be managed differently, with different coaching staffs and training schedules. Ahn accused the national team of trying to steer them all in the same direction, adding that doubles players were given priority in training and treatment.

Ahn also raised issues related to the ineffective training system while accusing the BKA of making unilateral decisions without the players’ input.

South Korean sports authorities have not made an official statement regarding Ahn’s remarks. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Tuesday it would conduct a thorough investigation into the matter after the Summer Games and review the system if deemed necessary.

The badminton association also declined to comment officially, saying its superiors had been informed of the situation. In an unofficial comment to local media, a BKA member said the association “did its best, sending a Korean doctor at the association’s expense. Which apparently wasn’t enough for Ahn.”

Bang Soo-hyun, a former badminton player and mentor of Ahn, the first Korean to win an Olympic gold medal in singles, also expressed indirect support for Ahn.

She refrained from any specific comment on the national team’s alleged mishandling of Ahn’s injury, saying she had no inside knowledge of the matter but believed Ahn should have been given more time to rest after the injury. Bang urged people to give Ahn a break to recover after his gold medal, and said the badminton association needed some form of change.

“Frankly, changes are needed for our (badminton) association. I understand that Seo Sung-jae and Chae Yu-jung also had a hellish schedule (before the Olympics),” she said, referring to the mixed doubles badminton team of Seo and Chan, which finished fourth at the Paris Olympics. “I think changes are needed to better protect the players.”