[Asian Games] Badminton star An Se-young captures 2nd straight women's singles gold

Ichinomiya, Japan - World No. 1 An Se-young claimed her second consecutive Asian Games gold medal in badminton on Tuesday, marking her as the first player to successfully defend the women's singles title at the continental competition. An defeated world No. 3 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan by a score of 2-0 (21-17, 21-9) in the women's singles final at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium.

This accomplishment makes An the first player to win back-to-back Asiad golds in women's singles since the event's inception in 1962. She has achieved a remarkable nine consecutive victories against Yamaguchi, including twice during this year's Asian Games. Prior to the singles final, An also emerged victorious over Yamaguchi in the women's team event semifinals on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, South Korea secured another badminton title for the country with a win in the women's doubles gold medal match. Just moments before, Lee So-hee and Baek Hana claimed the women's doubles gold medal. Yamaguchi started the match strongly, taking an early 4-1 lead with powerful shots that momentarily caught An off guard.

However, An managed to take the lead in the second set, ultimately securing the win in a closely contested match.