With the South Korean badminton team mired in a collective slump, it fell on Sung Ji-hyun, a women's singles player, to try and change the mood for the better with a win.
And beating the world No. 1, Carolina Marin of Spain, in Tuesday's quarterfinals would have done the job, but Marin was too much for Sung to handle, as she prevailed 2-0 (21-12, 21-16) in just 45 minutes.
"I know we've not played well here, but I tried not to think too much about it," the emotional Sung said afterward. "I wanted to play with more confidence, but I ended up getting too tightened up."
 |
Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald |
Sung, the world No. 7, fell to 1-6 against Marin. Sung was the last South Korean remaining in the women's singles.
She went down early in both of the games and never recovered -- a 6-1 deficit in the opening frame and an 8-0 hole in the next one.
Sung, 25, did show some signs of life midway through the second game, fighting back from 15-7 down to make it a five-point game at 16-11.
But she never got any closer than five points the rest of the match.
"I started playing a little better in the second game, but I am disappointed I couldn't kick it into an extra gear," Sung said. "I should've stayed closer early in the second game, but I was too nervous."
As soon as the draws came out, Sung said she knew she would run into Marin relatively early in the tournament and started preparing for the matchup.
"I lacked speed and power to win today," Sung admitted. "I don't know if this will be my last Olympics or I'll be going to the Tokyo Olympics. I am just sorry that I couldn't show everything I'd worked for."
Sung was only the latest South Korean player to be sent home without a shot at a medal.
On Monday, two men's doubles teams, including the top-ranked duo of Lee Yong-dae and Yoo Yeon-seong, and one women's doubles team lost their quarterfinals matches. The mixed doubles team of Ko Sung-hyun and Kim Ha-na also fell in the quarters on Sunday.
The women's doubles duo of Jung Kyung-eun and Shin Seung-chan is the only South Korean pair with a chance to reach the podium.
They will take on the world No. 2 from China, Tang Yuanting and Yu Yang, for the bronze medal on Thursday.
In the men's singles, Son Wan-ho, the world No. 8, is the only South Korean left standing, but he may not be around long. In Wednesday's quarterfinals, Son will go up against the second-ranked Chen Long of China. Son has gone 4-9 against the Chinese. (Yonhap)
