An Se-young used her platform in the aftermath of winning an Olympic gold medal in badminton to slam her home country’s federation.
Se-young swept China’s He Bingjiao in the gold medal match for badminton, she then turned her attention to the Badminton Federation of Korea – who she says is letting her down.
‘I think it may be difficult to continue with the national team after this moment,’ Se-young said after her win, as news.au.com reported.
Se-young claims that the national federation had been ‘neglecting’ her – saying that after enduring a knee injury in last October in the Asian Games, there was a lack of support from the federation.
‘I was so disappointed with [the association] during my injury. I really can’t get over those moments,’ Se-young told reporters.
South Korean badminton gold medalist An Se-young attacked her own federation on Tuesday
This came just after she had triumphed in women’s singles play over China’s He Bingjiao
The 22-year-old addressed the issue prior to the start of the games on her Instagram account with her 302,000 followers.
‘After the Asian Games, I was initially told I would need 2 to 6 weeks of rehabilitation before returning, but since the pain didn’t decrease, I visited a different clinic after the December Tour Finals,’ Se-young wrote.
‘The new diagnosis revealed that the partial tear in my patellar tendon would not improve quickly and that I would need to manage the pain and maintain the injury until the Olympics.’
She added she was forced to focus on ‘adapting to the pain and preparing for the Olympics, rather than immediate competition results.’
The decision to call out the federation has prompted South Korea’s sports ministry to investigate Se-young’s allegations.
In a statement on Tuesday, the sports ministry says they’ll obtain ‘exact facts as soon as the Olympics conclude’ and ‘review the need for appropriate improvement measures based on the findings.’
Additionally, the statement claimed it will ‘examine whether there are areas for improvement in athlete management across other sports as well.’
Se-young claims that South Korea’s badminton federation has been ‘neglecting’ her
Speaking to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, Se-young lashed out at the federation for failing to ‘train in a way that prevents injuries or take proper measures if an injury occurs.’
‘I found my motivation in my anger as I set my goals and pursued my dreams,’ Se-young told Yonhap, per news.au.com.
‘I wanted to make my voice heard. In a way, my dream was [to have] a ‘voice.”