The 'Golden Generation' of Korean swimming, which sparked a renaissance in the sport, is preparing to replicate its success from three years ago at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, this time in Aichi and Nagoya.
The swimming events at the 2026 Aichi and Nagoya Asian Games will take place from September 20 to 25 at the Tokyo Aquatics Center, with 41 of the 55 gold medals in swimming up for grabs in the pool. The Korean Sports Council has set a target of four gold medals in swimming, the second highest after archery, which aims for five.
Korea's swimming team is aiming for even better results than the 2022 Hangzhou Games, where they won a total of 22 medals, including six golds, six silvers, and ten bronzes. This was the highest number of medals ever won by Korea in swimming at the Asian Games, and they finished second in the overall gold medal count, a position they had not held since the 1974 Tehran Games.
During a media day for the swimming team held on August 25 at the Jincheon National Training Center, the athletes expressed confidence in surpassing their previous achievements. Team captain Lee Joo-ho (Seogwipo City Hall) stated, "In addition to the athletes who won gold medals at the last Hangzhou Games, new swimmers are also aiming for gold. This is not just a vague goal; we are showing it through our records."
Kim Woo-min (Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province), who dominated the 400m and 800m freestyle and the 800m relay at the Hangzhou Games, will compete in six events this time: the 200m, 400m, 800m, and 1500m freestyle, as well as the 400m and 800m relays. He expressed confidence, saying, "Like in Hangzhou, I am competing in many events, so I am confident I will win medals. My specific goal is to break my personal records in all events."
If Kim achieves the same success as in Hangzhou, he will become the second Korean swimmer to win three gold medals in consecutive Asian Games, following Park Tae-hwan, who accomplished this in the 2006 Doha and 2010 Guangzhou Games.
His main competitor is Zhang Jianzhuo (China), born in 2007 and dubbed the 'second Sun Yang.' He has been rapidly improving his times in the middle-distance freestyle events and set a world junior record of 3:42.82 in the 400m freestyle at the National Games in November last year, just 0.4 seconds behind Kim's personal best of 3:42.42.
Kim commented, "Zhang Jianzhuo is a familiar competitor in many of my events, but I try not to think too much about him."
Hwang Sun-woo (Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province), who won six medals (two gold, two silver, and two bronze) at the Hangzhou Games, will focus on the 100m and 200m freestyle and the 400m and 800m relays this time.
The Tokyo Aquatics Center holds good memories for Hwang, as he set a world junior record of 1:44.62 in the 200m freestyle heats at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and achieved an Asian record of 47.56 in the 100m freestyle semifinals to advance to the finals.
Hwang stated, "Tokyo is where I had my first major competition. I believe it shaped the swimmer I am today. I want to show everything I have this time as well."
His last two international competitions left him disappointed. Hwang finished ninth in the semifinals of the 200m freestyle at the 2024 Paris Olympics, failing to reach the finals. He also placed fourth in the same event at the World Swimming Championships in Singapore last July, missing out on a fourth consecutive medal.
However, he regained his form at the National Sports Festival last October, setting an Asian record of 1:43.92 in the 200m freestyle final. He explained, "I was overly ambitious in Paris, which made it difficult. This time, I am preparing with a calm mindset, focusing on showing 100% of what I practiced rather than being overly ambitious."
The 200m freestyle is expected to be a three-way battle among Korea, China, and Japan. Japan's Murasaki Tatsuya won a bronze medal at the World Championships in Singapore last year with a time of 1:44.54, just 0.18 seconds ahead of Hwang. Zhang Jianzhuo has also improved his personal best in this event to 1:44.53.
Hwang noted, "There are athletes who can post good times, but most are in the 1:44 range. If I can achieve another time in the 1:43 range, I believe I can reach the top of the podium."
Besides Kim Woo-min and Hwang Sun-woo, there are many other promising athletes on the team. Lee Joo-ho aims for a medal in his third consecutive Asian Games. He won Korea's first medal in the men's 100m backstroke (bronze) at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games and earned a bronze and silver in the same event at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.
Lee stated, "If I win a medal this time, it will be my third. I have heard that such a feat is unprecedented in Korean swimming, and it would be significant not just for me but for Korean swimming as a whole."
In the sprint events, Kim Young-beom (Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province) will make his Asian Games debut. He set a Korean record of 47.39 seconds in the 100m freestyle heats at the National Sports Festival last October, breaking the previous record set by Hwang at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics by 0.17 seconds.
Kim Young-beom will face world record holder Pan Zhanle (China, 46.40 seconds) in the 100m freestyle. He expressed confidence, saying, "I want to break my personal best in the 50m and 100m freestyle and win gold. While Pan Zhanle is intimidating, I don't think he's unbeatable."
Kim Seung-won (Gyeonggi Physical Education High School) will also make his Asian Games debut in the backstroke events. He remarked, "Although it's my first Asian Games, I have experience from the World Championships and overseas competitions. I am determined to win a gold medal and return home with it."
In the relays, all eyes are on the 800m freestyle relay. Korea won its first relay gold medal in Asian Games history at the Hangzhou Games, setting an Asian record of 7:01.73.
This time, the competition is expected to be even fiercer. Hwang noted, "In the 800m relay, Japan has recorded times in the 7:02 range, and China in the 7:00 range. We posted a time in the 7:01 range at Hangzhou. All three countries are within two seconds of each other. The condition on the day and the synergy of the relay team will be crucial."
The final four relay team members have yet to be determined. Last year, the 800m relay final at the World Championships featured Kim Young-beom, Kim Woo-min, Lee Ho-jun, and Hwang Sun-woo.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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