Korea's badminton confirmed both hope and regret at the 2024 Paris Olympics in August last year. Ahn Se-young (23, Samsung Life Insurance, world No. 1) gave Korea its first Olympic gold medal in 16 years, but silver medal in mixed doubles was the only silver medal for Kim Won-ho (26, Samsung Life Insurance) and Jeong Na-eun (25, Hwasun County Office, world No. 13). Korea's badminton is full of pride.
In order not to repeat the pain of being caught by ambush soldiers such as Japan, Malaysia and Denmark at the Paris Olympics, we had to hurry to prepare for the 2026 Asian Games and the 2028 LA Olympics. Soon after the Paris Olympics, Seo Seung-jae (28, Samsung Life Insurance), who had both men's doubles and mixed doubles, expressed his intention to focus only on men's doubles, and when Kim So-young (33, Incheon International Airport), a key resource in women's doubles, moved away from the Taegeuk mark, the team began to reorganize the doubles in earnest.
We saw the possibility of new doubles combinations at the 2025 Auréan Masters, which ended in the French Dome de Paris on the 9th (Korea time). Men's doubles Kang Min-hyuk (26, Korean military athletic unit) and Ki Dong-ju (25, Incheon International Airport, No. 8), Seo Seung-jae and Kim Won-ho (55, No. 1), women's doubles Baek Ha-na (25) and Lee So-hee (31, No. 1 Incheon International Airport), Kim Hye-jeong (27, Samsung Life Insurance) and Gong Hee-yong (29, Jeonbuk Bank, 19th), mixed doubles Jongmin Lee (19, Samsung Life Insurance) and Chae Yoo-jeong (30, Incheon International Airport, No. 8) all won the prize.
The Orléans Masters was the best test stage for the team. World-class badminton players such as Liang Wei-Keng and Wang Chang (China, No. 3) and Aaron Chia-Souik (Malaysia, No. 5) and Perli Tan-Muralitharan Tina (Thailand, No. 6). New Korean badminton doubles players won the title one after another, displaying performance on par with world-class players.
Notably, the discovery of new combinations in women's doubles and mixed doubles is a big achievement. It has been confirmed that Kim Hye-jeong and Gong Hee-yong in women's doubles are gradually gaining ground, and Jongmin Lee, who has recently shown remarkable growth in mixed doubles, has emerged as Chae's new partner 메이저놀이터. Chae, who injured her head after being hit by an opponent's racket during training late last year, has emerged from the aftermath. If they continue to work together smoothly, Korea's badminton, the "double-edged kingdom," can be close to making a leap forward again.