[Tokyo Olympics] Moon praises fighting spirit of Japan-born South Korean judoka

President Moon Jae-in said Tuesday that Japan-born South Korean judoka An Chang-rim, who won an Olympic bronze medal Monday, has brought pride not only to Korean residents in Japan but to all 50 million South Koreans. The 27-year-old An defeated Rustam Orujov of Azerbaijan for the bronze medal in the men's 73kg class at the Tokyo Olympics. An was born in Tokyo to second-generation Japanese-Korean parents and received offers to be naturalized as a Japanese citizen. But he never gave up on his Ko

July 27, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Young swimmer surprised with own fast start, upset with poor finish

TOKYO -- For a moment there, the swimming world held its collective breath Tuesday, as the South Korean teen swimmer Hwang Sun-woo was on a world record pace halfway through the 200m freestyle final at the Tokyo Olympics. The 18-year-old ended up in seventh place among eight finalists at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. But he did have his 15 minutes or fame -- or rather, about 50 seconds of it. Hwang had the fastest reaction time in the final with 0.58 second. He covered the first 100m in 49.78 seconds

July 27, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Teen swimmer Hwang Sun-woo finishes 7th in men's 200m freestyle

TOKYO -- South Korean teen swimmer Hwang Sun-woo ranked seventh in the men's 200m freestyle event of the Tokyo Olympics on Tuesday, the best performance by a South Korean swimmer in nine years. The 18-year-old was in the lead after the first 150 meters before losing steam and finishing second from last at 1:45.26 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. Tom Dean of Britain won the gold medal in 1:44.22, 0.04 ahead of fellow Briton Duncan Scott. Fernando Scheffer got the bronze in 1:44.66. Hwang had won the

July 27, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Veteran shooter Jin Jong-oh wraps up 5th Olympics with no medal

TOKYO -- South Korean pistol shooter Jin Jong-oh fell short in his second bid for a record-setting medal in Tokyo on Tuesday, coming up empty-handed in his fifth and possibly final Olympics. Jin and his teammate Choo Ga-eun failed to make it out of the qualification round in the mixed team 10m air pistol event at Asaka Shooting Range in Tokyo. They finished the first qualification phase in ninth place with 575 points, with only the top eight moving on to the next qualification stage. The South

July 27, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Top-ranked fencer to seek redemption in team event

TOKYO -- Oh Sang-uk, world No. 1 in men's sabre fencing, never came close to a medal in the individual event of the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday. After falling in the quarterfinals over the weekend, Oh will have a chance at redemption Wednesday when he and three teammates compete in the men's team event at Makuhari Messe Hall B in Chiba, east of Tokyo. Oh, Gu Bon-gil, Kim Jung-hwan and Kim Jun-ho will try to bring South Korea its second gold medal in the men's team sabre in three Olympics. Gu an

July 27, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Another day in Tokyo, another archery gold medal for S. Korea

TOKYO -- Stop us if you've heard this before. South Korea won an Olympic gold medal in archery. South Korea has gone 3-for-3 in archery events so far at the Tokyo Olympics. The latest gold medal came from the men's team event on Monday, as Oh Jin-hyek, Kim Woo-jin and Kim Je-deok defeated Chinese Taipei by the set score of 6-0 at Yumenoshima Park Archery Field in Tokyo. The trio shot a perfect 60 in the second set, giving South Korea its second consecutive Olympic title in the men's team event

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Tokyo-born judoka An Chang-rim wins bronze for S. Korea

TOKYO -- Japan-born South Korean judoka An Chang-rim captured his first Olympic medal in his birthplace on Monday, overcoming a grueling stretch that had the 27-year-old go to extra time in four consecutive matches. An defeated Rustam Orujov of Azerbaijan for the bronze medal in the men's 73kg class at the Tokyo Olympics at Nippon Budokan in the Japanese capital. An was born in Tokyo to second-generation Japanese-Korean parents, and has been competing for South Korea internationally since 2014

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] S. Korea wins 2nd consecutive gold in archery men's team event

TOKYO -- South Korea won its back-to-back Olympic gold medal in the men's archery team event on Monday, giving the country a third gold from the sport in as many days in Tokyo. Kim Je-deok, Kim Woo-jin and Oh Jin-hyek teamed up to defeat Chinese Taipei by the set score of 6-0 at Yumenoshima Park Archery Field in the Japanese capital on Monday. South Korea earlier collected gold medals in the mixed team event on Saturday and the women's team event on Sunday. The country is now men's and women'

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Fiery teen archer continues impressive run with 2nd gold in Tokyo

TOKYO -- South Korean teenage archer Kim Je-deok screamed and fist-pumped his way to top of the Tokyo Olympic podium for the second time in three days Monday, adding the men's team gold medal to the mixed team event title from the weekend. His voice hoarse from all the yelling, Kim teamed up with veterans Oh Jin-hyek and Kim Woo-jin for the men's team gold over Chinese Taipei at Yumenoshima Park Archery Field on Monday. Kim, 17, is now the second double gold medalist from South Korean archery

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Teen swimming sensation eyes another record in Tokyo

TOKYO -- South Korean swimming phenom Hwang Sun-woo has already broken the national record en route to the men's 200m freestyle final at the Tokyo Olympics. While he's at it, the 18-year-old wants to set another record. Hwang qualified for the final by finishing sixth overall in Monday's semifinals with the time of 1:45.53 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. The final is scheduled to start at 10:43 a.m. Tuesday. He'd made it to the semifinals by winning the heats Sunday, with a new South Korean record

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Why is S. Korea so good at archery? Athletes find answer in transparency, internal competition

TOKYO -- South Korea has dominated archery in the Olympics the way few other countries have in other sports. South Korea leads everyone with 26 gold medals, including two over the first two days of competition at the Tokyo Olympics this month. South Korea won the inaugural gold medal in the mixed team event Saturday and then captured its ninth consecutive gold medal in the women's team event Sunday. This leads to the question: Why is the country so good at archery? Theories abound, and gold m

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Swimmer Hwang Sun-woo reaches 200m freestyle final, 1st S. Korean in 9 years

TOKYO -- South Korean teen swimming sensation Hwang Sun-woo reached the men's 200m freestyle final of the Tokyo Olympics on Monday, becoming the first swimmer from the country to reach that stage in nine years. Hwang finished his semifinals race in 1:45.53 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, fifth in his heat but sixth overall among 16 swimmers. The top eight will race in the final, scheduled for 10:43 a.m. Tuesday. Hwang, 18, set a new national record in Sunday's heats with 1:44.62 and led everyone in

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Fencer proud of work despite falling short in gold medal defense

CHIBA -- South Korean fencer Park Sang-young came out of nowhere to snatch gold in the men's epee event at the 2016 Olympics, capturing the imagination of his country. The affable athlete with an easy smile and a dogged determination -- Park rallied from a 14-10 deficit against Geza Imre of Hungary and won 15-14 -- became an instant star of the Rio de Janeiro Games for South Korea. But along with newfound fame came the weight of expectations, something Park now admits became unbearable at time

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Shooter to take final aim at record-breaking medal

TOKYO -- Veteran South Korean pistol shooter Jin Jong-oh will take his one last shot at a medal to further bolster his Olympic legacy on Tuesday. He and teammate Choo Ga-eun will participate in the 10m air pistol team event at Asaka Shooting Range on the fourth day of competition at the Tokyo Olympics. Jin, now competing in his fifth Olympics, has so far collected six medals, with four golds and two silvers. The seventh medal will make him the most decorated South Korean Olympic athlete ever an

July 26, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] S. Korea beat Romania 4-0 to take Group B lead

TOKYO -- South Korea jumped to the top of Group B in the Tokyo Olympic men's football tournament with a 4-0 victory over Romania on Sunday. Midfielder Lee Kang-in grabbed a brace against the 10-man Romania at Ibaraki Kashima Stadium in Kashima, about 110 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, for South Korea's first victory of the competition. A Romanian own goal and a second-half score by Um Won-sang gave South Korea more than enough offense. South Korea, which lost to New Zealand 1-0 in last week's

July 25, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Teen swimmer breaks natl. record to win 200m freestyle heats

South Korean teen swimmer Hwang Sun-woo broke an 11-year-old national record in the men's 200m freestyle on Sunday at the Tokyo Olympics, while winning the heats to reach the semifinals. Hwang finished first in Heat 3 with the time of 1:44.62 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. Park Tae-hwan had the previous mark of 1:44.80, set while winning the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games gold medal. This was also Hwang's new personal best, topping his world junior record of 1:44.96 set in May. Hwang finished first o

July 25, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] An Baul wins bronze in men's judo

South Korean judoka An Baul claimed the bronze medal in the men's 66kg event at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday, reaching the podium for the second consecutive Summer Games. An defeated Manuel Lombardo of Italy by a decisive ippon in the bronze medal match at Nippon Budokan for his second straight medal. An won silver in the same class at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. An's is the first judo medal for South Korea in Tokyo. An got his ippon with his signature "seoi nage," or a shoul

July 25, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] Young veteran archer makes Olympic debut count with historic team gold

At only 25, South Korean archer Kang Chae-young has already been through more than her share of ups and downs, with one particularly gut-wrenching moment sticking out. At the national team trials for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, Kang finished one point behind Chang Hye-jin for the third and final spot. The two embraced and cried in each other's arms -- Kang upset at her loss and Chang feeling terrible for an archer nine years her junior. Chang went on to win two gold medals in Rio, sweepi

July 25, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] With 2nd gold, rising archery star joins elite company, inches closer to history

By capturing her second Olympic gold medal in as many days, South Korean archer An San has joined legends that came before her. The 20-year-old also has a chance to do what no archer has done in Olympic history: win three gold medals at a single competition. An combined with Jang Min-hee and Kang Chae-young for the women's team gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. They beat the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) by the set score of 6-0 at Yumenoshima Park Archery Field. By helping South K

July 25, 2021

[Tokyo Olympics] On cloud nine: S. Korea wins 9th consecutive gold in women's archery team event

South Korea has done it again -- for the ninth time, in fact. South Korea claimed its ninth consecutive Olympic gold medal in the women's archery team event on Sunday, beating the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) by the set score of 6-0 in the final of the Tokyo Summer Games. An San, Jang Min-hee and Kang Chae-young extended the most impressive winning streak in Olympic archery history. South Korea has won every gold medal in this event since it was introduced in Seoul in 1988. South Korea is

July 25, 2021