Young-Ah Gil, Marked the Debut of Badminton in the Olympics
I just told you guys about the short history of badminton, so, you all know that it all started in Barcelona and Young-Ah Gil was one of the athletes who saw it happened then.
As a demonstration sport back in Munich 1972, Badminton became an official sport that was included in the programme for the Barcelona Games. And at the time it was introduced, Asia was dominating the sport.
“Four events were on the programme: men’s’ singles and doubles and women’s singles and doubles. Some 177 athletes from 36 countries took part in the competition, including doubles specialist Young-Ah Gil, then aged 22. On 3 August 1992, under the lights of the centre court of the Pavelló de la Mar Bella, before almost 4,000 spectators, she was defeated in the semi-final, with her partner Shim, by Chinese pair Guan and Nong. A thrilling three-match set put paid to their hopes. The South Koreans had to be content with the bronze, but they gave their country its first Olympic badminton medal. At that edition of the Games, the Republic of Korea won a total of four medals in this sport, including two golds. Asia had confirmed its supremacy.”
(olympic.org)
Young-Ah Gil, together with partner Jang, was seeded number one for the ladies’ doubles. Though this pair wasn’t able to take home the gold, it was on the mixed doubles event, then paired with Kim, when Gil won the first ever Olympic gold for the said event.
With three medals, Young-Ah Gil is the second most decorated Olympian in badminton. By being one of the pioneer athletes in the first games in badminton at the Games, she entered the history of the sport.
“Under the aegis of the Badminton World Federation (BWF), this sport is currently represented in 156 countries on the five continents. The next Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008, in the heart of the Asian continent that has produced exceptional players, are sure to offer a great show, full of emotions.”
Tags: Badminton, Barcelona 1992, Beijing 2008, Olympians, Olympic News, Olympics, TriviaRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Badminton, Beijing 2008, Olympians, Olympic News, Trivia
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