An Se-young, who won the gold medal in women's singles badminton at the 2024 Paris Olympics, speaks with the press after returning to Korea through Incheon Airport on Aug. 7. Newsis
The Badminton Korea Association has taken a proactive stance by launching an official investigation in response to allegations made by gold medalist Ahn Se-young.
The association, which had remained silent in the immediate aftermath of the Paris Olympic Games, announced on Thursday that a special fact-finding committee had been formed to look into the matter.
This committee, which will begin its work in closed-door sessions on Friday, comes amid increasing pressure from the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.
The fact-finding committee consists of five members, including two external lawyers, a university professor, and two internal representatives—Lee Sang-soon, the head of the association's Human Rights Committee for athletes, and Park Gye-ok, the auditor of the association.
Their investigation will cover key aspects of the national team's operations, such as injury management, international competition participation, training systems, and management regulations.
The committee's goal is to identify areas for improvement and develop strategies for the continued growth and success of badminton in Korea.
Financial issues at center of conflict
The conflict between An and the association, which began with issues related to inadequate injury management, has now escalated into a financial dispute.
An, who belongs to Samsung Life Insurance, is demanding the freedom to secure personal sponsorships in order to ensure adequate financial compensation, while the association insists this is not possible due to concerns over fairness.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism has already begun investigating An's claims. The Korea Sports Council, which is expected to conduct its own investigation, may need to mediate the situation.
Current association regulations require national team players to use the uniforms and equipment designated by the association during training and competitions and to cooperate with promotional activities as requested by the association.
Players are limited to one personal sponsor, and even that is restricted to companies that do not compete with the association's official sponsors or badminton equipment suppliers.
An, who is already featured in Nike advertisements, must wear Yonex products from head to toe during national team matches due to an exclusive contract between the association and Yonex, worth $2.9 million (3.9 billion won) annually.
Badminton gold medalist An Se-young / Newsis
Sufficient financial rewards possible
An has expressed discomfort with this arrangement and even requested to wear sneakers from another brand, a request that was denied.
An's insistence that “badminton can offer sufficient financial rewards” is rooted in her desire to wear sneakers that fit her perfectly and to showcase brands with which she has sponsorship deals during competitions. Doing so would increase the financial support she receives from her sponsors.
However, allowing An to have personal sponsorships could lead to feelings of exclusion among her teammates and could potentially reduce the association's sponsorship revenue.
This situation has sparked a debate between those who view restrictions on personal sponsorships as reverse discrimination and those who believe that players should accept certain limitations for the greater good of the sport. It's a complex issue that demands careful and wise resolution.
Both An and the association have agreed to discuss the matter, though no specific schedule has been set. An was expected to compete in the DAIHATSU Japan Open 2024 - HSBC BWF World Tour starting on Aug. 20, which would have provided a natural opportunity for dialogue, but she has withdrawn from the event citing injury.
While injury is the official reason, many in the badminton community believe that her strained relationship with the association is the real cause for her withdrawal.
To resolve the conflict, both sides will likely need to compromise, possibly by looking at how other sports handle similar situations.
An Se-young celebrates on the podium after winning the gold medal at the badminton women's singles at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, in Paris, France. AP-Yonhap
Unique characteristics of each sport
In tennis, for example, players compete in international tournaments as individuals rather than as representatives of their association.
In table tennis, players wear uniforms from the national team sponsor but are allowed to use rackets and shoes from their personal sponsors.
Shin Yu-bin, a leading figure in Korean table tennis, wears a uniform by Butterfly, the national team sponsor while using a racket and shoes from different brands.
Yoo Seung-min, president of the Korea Table Tennis Association, said, “We receive sponsorship for the uniforms from Butterfly, but we allow players to use their preferred rackets and shoes.”
However, there are challenges in applying these models to badminton. Korean tennis players have not achieved significant results in international tournaments, and the prize money in international table tennis competitions is relatively low, making it difficult to directly compare this sport to badminton.
Badminton has international tournaments with prize pools of up to $1.5 million, and An earned about 900 million won from the tour last year.
An association official emphasized the importance of understanding the unique characteristics of each sport, adding, “We will review the recommendations that come out of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's investigation.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by staff of The Korea Times.