An Se Young, the world No. 1 in women's badminton, on Nov. 23 wins the Australian Open of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) in Sydney for her 10th title of the season. (BWF)

By Lee Dasom

Badminton superstar An Se Young on Nov. 23 won the Australian Open of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) in Sydney, setting a woman's singles record for tournament wins in a season with 10.

In the final, she defeated Indonesia's Putri Kusuma Wardani in straight sets (21-16, 21-14) in just 40 minutes.

Winning her first Australian Open since 2022, the champion went unbeaten in the tournament by winning all games from the round of 32 to the championship.

By claiming 10 of the 14 contests she has competed in this year, An broke her own record of nine set in 2023 for the most singles tournament wins in a BWF season.

If An wins the BWF World Tour Finals next month, she will tie the men's record of 11 set in 2019 by Kento Momota of Japan.

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Chae Hwi-young sent a congratulatory message to An that day on her milestone.

"An Se-young has won a remarkable 10 international tournaments this year alone, an invaluable feat that again demonstrates to the world the power of Korean badminton," he said. "I send my warm congratulations to the girl who trained silently as a child on a sandy beach wearing a lead weight."

dlektha0319@korea.kr