[Asian Games] Today's Event: Swimming Kim Woo-min Challenges Double Crown in 1500m

Judo Men and Women Unlimited Class Kim Minjong and Kim Hayoon Expected to Win Medals
Men's Table Tennis Reaches 10 Consecutive Team Finals, Clashes with Strongest China

The swimming team, which won two gold medals the previous day, continues its gold medal hunt.

In the men's 4x200m freestyle relay, Hwang Sun-woo, Lee Ho-jun, Yang Jae-hoon, and middle-distance star Kim Woo-min, who also competed in the relay, will challenge for the individual gold medal in the 1500m freestyle. Kim Woo-min is aiming for up to four gold medals in this competition, participating in the 800m relay as well as the individual 400m, 800m, and 1500m events. He seeks to surpass the record of three gold medals at the Asian Games set by Korean swimming legends Choi Yun-hee and Park Tae-hwan, aiming to create a new legend. Kim Woo-min is targeting the 1500m gold medal for the first time in 17 years since Park Tae-hwan at the 2006 Doha Asian Games.

Kim Woo-min is greeting at the awards ceremony after winning the gold medal in the men's 800m freestyle relay final at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games held on the 25th at the Olympic Sports Center Swimming Pool in Hangzhou, China.
Photo by Yonhap News

Kim Woo-min boosted his condition by swimming the third leg in the 800m relay the previous day. When he received the race from the second leg swimmer Lee Ho-jun, the gap with second-place China was 0.45 seconds. After completing the first 50m segment, the gap narrowed to 0.27 seconds. However, true to his middle-distance star status, he steadily widened the gap thereafter. At the end of the second segment, Kim Woo-min extended the lead to 0.61 seconds, and in the third segment, the gap grew to 1.23 seconds. When Kim Woo-min finished his leg, the gap with China had widened to 1.94 seconds. The final leg swimmer, Hwang Sun-woo, started with a comfortable lead and at one point extended the gap to over 3 seconds, securing the gold medal with ease.

Kim Woo-min's 1500m final is scheduled for 8:54 PM. He will also challenge for gold in the 800m on the 28th and his main event, the 400m, on the 29th. At the World Championships, Kim Woo-min was the only Asian swimmer to reach the finals in the 400m event last year and this year, finishing 6th and 5th respectively.

Heo Yeon-kyung and Jung So-eun will compete in the women's 100m freestyle, Kim Min-seok in the men's 400m individual medley, and Lee Eun-ji in the women's 200m backstroke. Han Da-gyeong, who placed 5th in the women's 1500m freestyle on the 24th, will participate in the women's 400m freestyle event.

The taekwondo team, which has won three gold medals over the past two days, will pursue their fourth gold medal. Three weight classes will compete. Lee Ki-beom will compete in the men's 63kg, Park Hye-jin in the women's 53kg, and Kim Yoo-jin in the women's 57kg category.

Taekwondo preliminary rounds for the round of 32 start at 10 AM, followed by quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals from 3 PM.

Judo will feature five weight classes. Yoon Hyun-ji (women's under 78kg), Kim Ha-yoon (women's over 78kg), Han Ju-yeop (men's under 90kg), Won Jong-hoon (men's under 100kg), and Kim Min-jong (men's over 100kg) will compete.

Kim Min-jong, competing in the men's open weight category, is aiming for a medal. He won a bronze medal at last year's World Championships held in Tashkent. Kim Ha-yoon, competing in the women's open weight category, is also considered a medal contender.

Preliminary rounds by weight class start at 11 AM, with bronze medal matches and finals from 5 PM.

Fencing events include women's sabre and men's ?p?e individual competitions. Yoon Ji-soo and Jeon Eun-hye will compete in women's sabre, while Kwon Young-jun and Kim Jae-won will compete in men's ?p?e.

The men's table tennis team, which has reached the finals for 10 consecutive tournaments, will compete against the world's strongest team, China, for the gold medal at 8 PM.

Korean Men's Table Tennis National Team Jang Woojin [Photo by Yonhap News]

The men's basketball team, led by coach Chu Il-seung, will play their first group stage match against Indonesia at 6:30 PM at the Zhejiang University Zijingang Gymnasium. The men's hockey team will play their second group stage match against Thailand at 9:45 PM at the Gung-su Canal Sports Park.

The men's Go individual event continues on its third day. Currently, Shin Jin-seo leads Group A with 4 wins, and Park Jeong-hwan is second in Group B with 3 wins and 1 loss. A total of eighteen players are competing in the men's Go individual event, divided into two groups of nine, with the top four from each group advancing to the quarterfinals.

The men's rugby team will play the semifinals against China starting at 12:15 PM. If they win, they will compete in the gold medal match at 7:05 PM against the winner of the Japan-Hong Kong match.

The men's sepak takraw regu team will play their second group stage match against Malaysia at 10 AM. The team defeated Indonesia 2-1 in their first match on the 24th. The women's regu team has already recorded two consecutive wins, defeating China and Laos 3-0 each.

In cycling, the women's cycling team, which won the team sprint title in the short-distance category at last year's Asian Track Cycling Championships, will compete. The team members are Lee Hye-jin, Jo Sun-young, Hwang Hyun-seo, and Park Ji-hye.