South Korean badminton ace An Se-young is setting her sights on a successful title defense at the upcoming BWF World Championships in Paris, where she hopes to build on her impressive track record in France.
The world No. 1 and reigning champion in women’s singles will return to the same Parisian venue where she clinched her first Olympic gold medal last summer. The world championships run from Aug. 25 to 31.
“I’ve always played well in France, and I can’t wait to see what kind of performance I will have there,” An said during a press conference at the Jincheon National Training Center. “I’ve been quite lucky at times in France, and I have good feelings about competing again.”
The 23-year-old has enjoyed remarkable success this season, collecting six BWF World Tour titles, including the prestigious All England Open. Notably, she has defeated China’s world No. 2 Wang Zhiyi in four finals this year. An leads their head-to-head record 13-4.
An also acknowledged the challenges ahead, emphasizing the need for a fresh mindset. “I tend to do better when I start a tournament with a clean slate,” she said. “I will try to forget about the past and have a fresh mindset.”
Despite withdrawing from the China Open semifinals in July due to fatigue, An confirmed she is now training at full strength and aims to peak in time for the worlds.
Her evolving style has also become a talking point, as she shifts from her defensive roots to a more aggressive approach—an adjustment that brought her an unbeaten run at the Japan Open in July.
Head coach Park Joo-bong praised her progress but cautioned, “I am a little worried she will put too much pressure on herself because she is a perfectionist. At the world championships, she will really have a battle against herself.”
