(Asiad) Top-ranked shuttler An Se-young cruises into women's singles final

NAGOYA, Japan (Sept. 28) -- World No. 1 An Se-young advanced to the women's singles final of badminton at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan on Monday, positioning herself for a potential record-setting performance. An defeated China's Chen Yufei 2-0 (21-5, 21-12) in the semifinals at Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium. Her achievement would make her the first player to win consecutive women's singles gold medals in Asian Games history. The women's singles tournament began in 1962.

In a rematch of the 2023 Asian Games gold medal match, An showcased her consistent dominance over her longtime opponent, Chen. An opened the first game with nine straight points, and scored five consecutive points in the second game to extend her lead. An has now won five consecutive meetings against Chen. In Tuesday's final, An is set to face Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, who herself holds a strong record against An with wins in their past eight meetings.

Additionally, Lee So-hee and Baek Hana of South Korea secured their place in the women's doubles final by defeating Japan's Kie Nakanishi and Rin Uesaka 2-0 (21-13, 21-12) on Monday. If successful, they would become the first South Korean women's doubles team to win an Asian Games gold since 2002. Lee and Baek will face the world No. 1 team from China, Lin Shengshu and Tan Ning, in the final on Tuesday.

In men's doubles, South Korea's Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae were eliminated by Indonesia's Daniel Marthin and Leo Rolly Carnando 2-0 (21-11, 21-14) in the semifinals. With no third-place match in badminton, Kim and Seo secured the bronze medal. This marked their first Olympic Games since 2010 and their first Asiad win in men's doubles since 2002.