An Se Young ( 안세영 )

knetz doesn't seems happy with asy comment about the contract thing and also sponsorship. lot of negative comments towards her recently. i also didn't know that your income as a badminton player are limited if you're only a high school graduate

https://m.wikitree.co.kr/articles/974587#_enliple

anyway bka has confirmed that asy will not play at japan open & possibly korea open this month. her team (samsung insurance life) sent a medical certificate that said she need at least 4 weeks rest due to her injured knee and ankle (which she suffered prior to the olympics, which is why her movement in paris was slightly slower compared to in indonesia & singapore)
 
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If she goes ahead and BKA doesnt, we will never see ASY in international badminton again and she will eventually announce retirement. Korean culture is very different than malaysia in terms of things like this
Hopefully there will be a win win solution.
If there is a deadlock is there any possibility of ASY playing for another country?
I think with her age and achievements it would be a shame if she had to retire, I'm sure there will be many countries that welcome her with open arms.
 
Hopefully there will be a win win solution.
If there is a deadlock is there any possibility of ASY playing for another country?
I think with her age and achievements it would be a shame if she had to retire, I'm sure there will be many countries that welcome her with open arms.
Refer back to page 7 of this thread. I posted the BWF regulations on a player moving associations.
 
Badminton Korea Association launches investigation into An Se-young controversy

Olympic champ seeks personal sponsorships for fair compensation

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.

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.

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.

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/sports/2024/08/600_380660.html
 
"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."
i can't tell whose opinion that is: ktimes, the reporter or a bka official. in any case it's a bullshit argument as well.

let all players pursue their own shoe & racket deal or use the team stuff if they aren't good enough yet to have their own deal. i can see why the equipment companies might not like it. they would have to pay more for the top athletes instead of getting a "group discount", even though the companies can and would pay more.
 
"The badminton association said it will be unlikely that it would allow An to participate in the WBF-authorized international competitions if she decides to leave the national team. As a member of the WBF, the KBA has the right to decide whether to authorize any South Korean player wishing to participate in WBF events."

that sums up everything wrong with badminton in a nutshell. bwf gives associations this power.

“If a regulation is ignored, there can be substantial concern over possibility of (other) national team athletes leaving. This would make it difficult (for us) to operate the national team,” it said.

that is utter bullshit. independent athletes will come together for national team events. it happens in every sport. wtf do they think the olympics is all about? nat'l associations in all other sports do not exist for the purpose of dictating an athletes career.
  • a nat'l association should not be the toll gate blocking an athletes individual progress.
  • in a free society a nat'l association has no legal right to dictate an individual athlete's career for the benefit of the nat'l association, especially for an individual sport, which badminton clearly is.
  • for the sake of the future of badminton current & former players must sue bwf in court to abolish the registration bylaw, which will automatically strip the associations of their power.
When will be the time that this issue be taken up with Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS)?

If it did come that, the verdict might go to the players.
 
When will be the time that this issue be taken up with Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS)? If it did come that, the verdict might go to the players.
it will, but, the players have to bring it up.

if no players file a case nothing will ever change. bwf and the federations sure as hell won't ask for change.
 
The investigation came to a virtual halt after An refused to comply with the association’s request to attend the investigation, and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism expanded its probe to include procedural issues and broader operational concerns within the association.

According to sources within the association and the badminton community, the investigation committee had attempted to schedule a meeting with An this week by offering multiple time slots to her team, Samsung Life Insurance. However, the team responded that it was difficult for her to attend due to scheduling conflicts.

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/sports/2024/08/600_381007.html
 
The investigation came to a virtual halt after An refused to comply with the association’s request to attend the investigation, and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism expanded its probe to include procedural issues and broader operational concerns within the association.
"She believed that an investigation led by the association would not yield an impartial outcome."

and she is correct. it's blatant conflict of interest.

"Additionally, the ministry plans to announce the results of an expanded investigation into operational issues within the association, including potential violations of subsidy laws, as early as next month."

financial skimming is never a surprise. i hope they find something shady and it blows up bka thereby causing structural changes.
 
This led her to meet with Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Jang Mi-ran, a former Olympic gold medalist in weightlifting, instead of attending the association’s investigation.

According to the ministry, the two had an honest discussion about the challenges faced by national team athletes. With Vice Minister Jang showing a keen interest in An’s concerns, it is expected that the ministry’s investigation into the association will gain momentum.

As a result, the association is now unable to continue its internal investigation. Not only is An’s participation uncertain, but the association must also justify the legitimacy of the investigation committee’s formation as questioned by the ministry.

The association has stated that it intends to resume the investigation after addressing the ministry's concerns and securing An’s cooperation.

Meanwhile, the ministry is conducting its own investigation into the association, based on An’s pointed criticisms of the national team’s inadequate injury management and lack of systematic support. Additionally, the ministry plans to announce the results of an expanded investigation into operational issues within the association, including potential violations of subsidy laws, as early as next month.
Can the association sue the ministry in court to halt the investigation?
 
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Reading between the lines, it looks like there are some issues of the impartiality of the Associations own self formed investigative committee
 
it will, but, the players have to bring it up.

if no players file a case nothing will ever change. bwf and the federations sure as hell won't ask for change.
Just as a side note, FIFA allows players to switch nations team if they have not played more than 3 competitive matches before the age of 21.
 
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