SHANGHAI: World No 1 An Se-young was dumped out in the quarterfinals of the Badminton Asia Championships today as the South Korean went down in straight games to China’s He Bingjiao.
With the home crowd in the Chinese city of Ningbo behind her, the sixth-ranked He triumphed 21-17, 21-18 to reach the last four.
An, the top seed in Ningbo, will be favourite to win gold at this summer’s Paris Olympics but she has been struggling with a knee injury.
There was no such trouble for China’s Shi Yuqi, the men’s top seed, who reached the semifinals with a 22-20, 21-13 defeat of Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn.
The prestigious annual tournament is the final chance for Asian players to seal a spot at the Olympics.