(LEAD) (Olympics) Top-ranked badminton star enjoys dream finish with convincing victory

In the weeks leading up to the Paris Olympics, South Korean badminton star An Se-young, world No. 1 in the women's singles, often spoke about having a "romantic finish" to her tournament in the French capital. In a city long known as one of the world's most romantic places, An got her wish on Monday -- not by finding the love of her life, but by kissing an Olympic gold medal for the first time. For Olympic athletes, is there anything more romantic than having their shiny medal around their neck? An defeated He Bingjiao of China 2-0 (21-13, 21-16) in the women's singles gold medal match at Porte de La Chapelle Arena on Monday. Short of falling madly in love with someone in Paris, this was a dream finish for the 22-year-old South Korean. An had to come from behind to win each of her two previous knockout matches, beating Akane Yamaguchi of Japan and then Gregoria Mariska Tunjung of Indonesia in three games after dropping the opening frame. Then against He, An looked in full control from the onset, and did n't trail again the rest of the match after going down 8-7 in the first game. Showing off every shot in her bag, An consistently had He on the move and finished off long rallies with well-placed winners. Even when He tried to fight back, the match hardly seemed in doubt. An appeared destined for Olympic success when she reached the No. 1 ranking for the first time and captured her maiden world title last summer. But then An suffered a serious knee injury during the gold medal match of the Asian Games in October. She defeated her rival from China, Chen Yufei, in three games while essentially playing on one leg, and An paid a price for it. Due to lingering effects of the ligament injury, An wasn't the same player earlier this year that she had been last year. As the Olympic Games approached, there were legitimate question marks surrounding An's health and form. An thanked her trainers for not giving up on her even when An herself wanted to. "Because of my injury, I was not in a good spot before the Olympics , but I had so much help along the way from so many people," An said. "They are the reason that I couldn't afford to give up." An looked rusty out of the gate in the group stage but she blamed her sloppy play on nerves and lack of recent competitive action. As the tournament progressed, An regained her form. Her knee might still not have been 100 percent, but she has perhaps been the best-conditioned player in the tournament. Even when she was pushed to three games against Akane Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals and Gregoria Mariska Tunjung in the semifinals, An never looked any worse for wear, while her opponents were bent over with hands on their knees. An didn't need extra work in the final, and worked He into the ground before winning several long rallies. There were moments during the competition when An showed hints of the pressure she was carrying, trying to end a long badminton drought for South Korea. It had been 16 years since the country had last won an Olympic gold in badminton, and 28 years sin ce its last medal in a singles event. Former world No. 1 Bang Soo-hyun won the women's singles gold in 1996, four years after taking home silver. And with Bang providing commentary for Korean TV in the booth, An put on quite a show in her convincing victory. After the medal ceremony, An said some huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders with the victory. "I can finally breathe now and get a good night's sleep," An said. "The moment I won the match, all the things I'd gone through came flooding back to me. It was so overwhelming." Before departing for Paris on July 12, An told reporters she wanted to come home with a bottle of champagne in her hand to celebrate her achievement. By proving who's boss in women's badminton today, An clearly earned her right to some bubbly. "I've said all along I wanted to have a romantic finish, and I am really happy that I've kept my word," An said with a smile. "I want to go home shaking a bottle of champagne." Source: Yonhap News Agency