Minatsu Mitani on Friday advanced to the semifinals of the women's singles at the World Badminton Championships.
By reaching the semifinals. Mitani assured herself of at least winning a bronze medal, and becomes the first Japanese woman to win a singles medal at the worlds in 37 years. The 22-year-old Mitani, the 16th seed, defeated South Korean fifth seed Sung Ji-hyun 9-21, 21-18, 22-20 in 1 hour, 5 minutes.
Mitani will face top seed Li Xuerui of China in the semifinals.