“Shuttlecock queen” Ahn Se-young(24, Samsung Life Insurance) comfortably advanced to the round of 16 at the Denmark Open. She began her bid for a ninth title of 2026 on a high note with her 57th win of the season.
World No. 1 Ahn Se-young on the 14th (Korea time) at the SJF Bank Arena in Odense, Denmark, in the 2026 Denmark Open Badminton Championships (Super 750) women’s singles round of 32 defeated Polina Bukhlrova (Ukraine·world No. 41) 2-0 (21-13 21-11).
Ahn Se-young toppled Bukhlrova in just 36 minutes. She surged early with four consecutive points in the first game, and at 13-10 she took four more points in succession to repel Bukhlrova’s comeback.
The second game was not much different. Building a lead from the start, Ahn Se-young pulled away with five straight points from 11-7. She reached 21 points first without facing a crisis and secured her place in the round of 16.
With this victory Ahn Se-young’s 2026 season record became 58 matches, 57 wins and 1 loss. Her winning percentage is an astonishing 98.28%. She has not lost even once since losing to world No. 2 Wang Zhiyi (China) in the All England Open final in March.
She looks poised to surpass last season’s mark of 11 titles in women’s singles, the most ever. Ahn Se-young has already claimed eight women’s singles trophies this year as she continues her dominant run.
Ahn Se-young returned from the 2026 Aichi·Nagoya Asian Games with a gold medal around her neck. She will target the top spot in the two-event European swing, from this Denmark Open to the France Open starting on the 20th.
Ahn Se-young is also the defending champion at the Denmark Open. She retired injured during the final against Yamaguchi Akane in the 2021 tournament, and finished runner-up in 2024 after losing 0-2 to Wang Zhiyi. But last year she avenged her final defeat to Wang Zhiyi and captured the Denmark Open title for the first time.
Meanwhile Ahn Se-young’s next opponent is Denmark’s Line Christophersen (world No. 12). While Ahn Se-young is clearly the superior player, Christophersen’s home-court advantage could be a factor.
If Ahn Se-young defeats Christophersen, her quarterfinal opponent will be the winner of the match between Yvonne Li (Germany·world No. 45) and Tanvi Sharma (India·world No. 24).
In the semifinals she is likely to meet a Japanese player. One surviving player from Miyazaki Tomoka (world No. 7)-Akechi Hina (world No. 23) and Nozomi Okuhara (world No. 11)-Chiu Pin-chien (world No. 20) will advance to the semifinals. Except for Taiwan’s Pin-chien, all are Japanese nationals.
On the other half of the draw Yamaguchi Akane (Japan·world No. 3), Wang Zhiyi, and Putri Kusuma Wardani (Indonesia·world No. 5) among others will challenge for a place in the final. For Ahn Se-young to face them she must first reach the final.
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