An Se-young's Thomas & Uber Cup 2026 Achievement Places Her in the Elite League of Lin Dan
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Sport Themen der Woche KW23 Sport Bilder des Tages SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE - JUNE 11: An Se-young of South Korea celebrates after winning the Women s Singles final match against Akane Yamaguchi of Japan on day six of the Singapore Open 2023 at Singapore Indoor Stadium on June 11, 2023 in Singapore. PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxHUNxONLY Copyright: xVCGx 111440679872
The 2026 Thomas and Uber Cup tournaments came to a close on Sunday, with China taking home the Thomas Cup victory, while South Korea clinched the Uber Cup. Leading the charge for the Korean side was An Se-young, pulling off a win that puts her in league with badminton royalty with the likes of Lin Dan.
South Korea pulled off a 3-1 victory over the Chinese team, defeating the defending champions. As South Korea’s lead singles player, Se-young brought home a clean sheet, winning all six match-ups, from the group stage straight to the finals.
This spotless victory, as well as her 5-match winning streak at the Sudirman Cup, puts her in elite company, joining a very short list of elite No. 1-ranked players with flawless team-event runs in both competitions since 2000, per a recent X post by Badminton Ranks.
The World No.1 has now matched the records of the sport's greatest icons. China’s Lin Dan, the doubles pairing of Cai Yun/Fu Haifeng, and current men's world No.1 Shi Yuqi are the only other players to have achieved this feat.
The Uber Cup victory didn’t come easy for Se-young, as she faced some of the very best in women’s badminton.
Denmark saw her give it her all in the group stage, winning against former World No. 1, Ratchanok Intanon, in two straight games. She went on to best the Bulgarian heavy hitter, Kaloyana Nalbantova, winning the first match 21-7.
Her final matchup in the group stage was against Clara Azurmendi, whom she beat in two games, with scores of 21-14, 21-11.
The group stages saw Se-young win 126 points while dropping only 71, giving her a 64% win rate across her matchups in Group D.
The crowd at Forum Horsens watched as the South Korean team went on to dominate the playoff rounds.
An Se-young and team clean house at Uber Cup Playoffs
Team South Korea held their own at the playoff round of the Uber Cup, led from the front by Se-young and Kim Ga-eun, both refusing to drop a single game.
Se-young, after defeating Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Pin-Chian and Indonesia’s Putri Kusuma Wardani, moved into the final to face China, represented by World No. 2 Wang Zhiyi. The Korean star bested Zhiyi 21-10, 21-13 in two straight games.
Kim Ga-eun showcased a dominant performance as well, winning in straight games against Chen Yu Fei, adding to South Korea’s arsenal.
The doubles matches were equally competitive.
While the Chinese duo of Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning clinched victory over the South Korean Jeong Na-eun and Lee So-hee, the other pairing gave South Korea the victory.
Baek Ha-na and Kim Hye-jeong pulled back after a first-game loss of 16-21. The duo went on to defeat China’s Jia Yifan and Zhang Shuxian in the second (21-10) and third matchups (21-13).
This marked South Korea’s third Uber Cup victory, with An Se-young retaining her No. 1 World Rank.
Do you think An Se-young and the South Korean side can keep the Chinese at bay for their next matchup as well? Let us know in the comments.
