'Injury Aftermath' Ahn Se-young "It's harder than I thought...I'm comforted by the good game"
Badminton player Ahn Se-young (21-Samsung Life Insurance) won a heartbreaking gold medal at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games, but she has been dealing with an injury ever since.
She has won 10 international titles and finished as runner-up three times this year, but all of those victories came before her injury at the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Ahn injured her right knee in the final of that tournament, and after about five weeks of rest and rehabilitation, she hasn't been able to shake off the effects of the injury, failing to reach the final of her last three events.
She failed to qualify for an international event for the first time this year, falling in the round of 16 at the China Masters in November, and was upset in the 안전카지노사이트 BWF World Tour Finals last week by the highly-rated Tai Tzu-Ying (CHN).
Ahn was brought to her knees at 19-10 in the third set of the World Tour Finals quarterfinals when she twice allowed Tai to score six consecutive points.
Even Ahn, who prides herself on her mental toughness, had to admit that it was a difficult and embarrassing time.
That's why she gave herself a harsh score of 70 at the national team awards ceremony on Tuesday.
"In the beginning (of the year), I went up to 80-90 points, but in the second half, I was around 50 points, so I want to give myself 70 points (in the end)," Ahn said. "I want to be a consistent player from the beginning to the end because I pursue perfection, but I couldn't do that this year," she reflected.
"The injury was more difficult than I thought it would be," he said, adding, "Considering what I've accomplished, I should be back in shape sooner, but it's taken me longer than I expected."
"I wanted to end (the year) on a high note at the World Tour Finals, but it didn't happen," he said.
But Ahn, who has faced her fair share of setbacks, seemed to have a solution in mind.
Ahn has shown that after each setback, including a first-round exit at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang and a quarterfinal exit at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she has improved.
"I'm a player who shouldn't be greedy," Ahn said of her 50-60 percent recovery. I have to prepare well for next year's Paris Olympics, so I'm trying not to think about it too quickly," she said.
"I've grown through the crisis, so I'm curious about how I overcame it," she said, adding, "I will do my best every day and create 'another Ahn Se-young' next year."
There are many 'moments of glory' for Ahn, who has won not only the Asian Games but also the Korea Open and World Championships, to draw courage from.
Ahn said she often watches videos of her competitions this year, saying, "When I see the matches that I did well, I feel comforted and think that I can reach that level again."
"I think it's important to overcome myself, and I'll try to give myself a 99 (next year)," she smiled. 카지노사이트