The secret to escaping a slump that plagued them for seven months was the support of Korean fans.
“World No. 1” Seo Seung-jae–Kim Won-ho defeated Japan’s Hokki Takuro–Kobayashi Yugo in the men’s doubles final of the 2026 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Korea Open (Super 500) at Jinnam Gymnasium in Yeosu, Jeonnam Gwangju Integrated Special City on the 8th, winning 2-1 (21-12, 20-22, 21-19) in games to claim their second consecutive title at the tournament.
With the win, the Seo Seung-jae–Kim Won-ho pair broke a long slump of nine consecutive international tournaments without a victory and won their first title in seven months. They also regained the pride of being world No. 1 in men’s doubles.
After the match Kim Won-ho said, “I’m happy to win after seven months. Winning in Korea feels new and is meaningful. I gained a lot of confidence,” and expressed his joy.
Seo Seung-jae laughed and said, “I worked hard for this moment. I was happy to win in front of so many fans after a long time.”
It was their first win in seven months. The world No. 1, who had finished nine consecutive tournaments without a title, returned to Korea and won. Seo Seung-jae said, “We did very well last year. I was doing well this year, but there were prolonged moments when I fell short of expectations. There were times when my confidence fell. I’m relieved and happy to have found my confidence through this,” and breathed a sigh of relief.
That day Jinnam Gymnasium was packed with home fans. Cheers erupted every time Korea scored. Seo Seung-jae said, “I laughed when I heard the cheer calling me ‘milky-white Seo Seung-jae.’ Seeing fans who came from far away to cheer, I thought I had to show a good performance until the end. I gained motivation for future tournaments,” and did not forget to express his gratitude.
Kim Won-ho smiled and said, “I could hear ‘We love you, Kim Won-ho,'” and laughed together.
Although they achieved back-to-back Korea Open titles, the season is not over. Next week is the Kumamoto Open and in December there is the Hangzhou finals. Seo Seung-jae targeted another title, saying, “If my body is good I will play in next week’s Kumamoto tournament. I will prepare well for the final and do well.”
Kim Won-ho vowed another title, saying, “I have been filling in the areas that were lacking. I will show a strong performance and good matches at the final tournament.”
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