Park Seul knew she had a tough day ahead at the YONEX Northern Marianas Open. With two finals on the agenda, she needed to be at her sharpest from the first point to the last.
In the first match of the day, the Korean athlete took to the court with Lee Hyeong Woo in the mixed doubles. The scoreline didn’t tell the full story of the match’s quality, especially in the second game, where long rallies pushed both sides to their limit. Even so, Lee/Park defeated Tori Aizawa/Hina Osawa 21-11, 21-18.
“It was a really tough match, I was worried that I would not be able to play well in my second match,” said Park. “However, both my mixed and doubles partners are very good. It made things a lot easier for me.”
The partnership of Park and Moon in the women’s doubles proved just as effective. Despite entering the final aware of the gaps between themselves and their opponents, the Korean duo capitalised on every chance they got, converting a 21-16, 17-21, 21-15 win over Miki Kanehiro/Yuna Kato (JPN).
“We knew they were stronger than us, we knew they were faster than us,” said Moon. “So, we tried to play harder and make it hard for them to return the shuttle.”
Park closed out her first YONEX Northern Marianas Open with two gold medals.
Aizawa Bounces Back
Tori Aizawa didn’t get the outcome he wanted in the mixed doubles final, but he didn’t let it linger.
“I couldn’t change the outcome, so I didn’t want to think about it any more, I still had another opportunity to win,” said the Japanese player. “Three years ago, I was runner-up at this event, so I really wanted to win this year.”
That focus paid off in the men’s doubles. With his partner Daisuke Sano covering a lot of the court and encouraging him throughout, Aizawa claimed the title.
For Sano, the moment carried its own weight.
“I am very happy. In my badminton life I have won very few international tournaments, so to win today is a very precious thing to me.”
The final score: 21-19, 13-21, 21-16, against Korea’s Jin Sung Ik/Lee Hyeong Woo.
Masuki Holds The Line
Sakura Masuki took to the court in the women’s singles final looking to defend her 2025 title, against an opponent who had grown stronger as the tournament progressed. Aware of this, the defending champion went in with a clear plan: beat Nodoka Sunakawa at her own game.
“I knew from previous matches that [Sunakawa] likes to play long rallies, so I decided to play longer rallies than her,” she said. “I just wanted to keep the rally going as long as possible, and make sure I didn’t drop the shuttle on my side.”
In the men’s singles, Koo Takahashi (JPN) put up a strong fight, but Park Sang Yong’s (KOR) precision proved decisive. The Korean player claimed his second international title with a 21-15, 19-21, 21-19 victory.
