Kim Young-beom secured a silver medal in the men's 100m freestyle, marking South Korea's first swimming medal at the event. Hwang Sun-woo also proved his mettle by winning a bronze medal.
On September 20, at the Tokyo Aquatics Center, Kim clocked a time of 47.65 seconds to finish second in the men's 100m freestyle. Notably, he led the race up to the 50m mark, drawing attention.
Hwang Sun-woo also made it to the podium with a time of 47.79 seconds, earning a bronze medal for the second consecutive Asian Games in the same event.
The gold medal was claimed by Pan Zhanle, the world record holder and a prominent figure in Chinese swimming. Pan finished just 0.04 seconds ahead of Kim with a time of 47.61 seconds, reaffirming his status as the top competitor in this event for two consecutive tournaments. He also won the 100m freestyle at the Paris Olympics.
This South Korean team is being hailed as a golden generation for swimming. Alongside Kim and Hwang, athletes like Kim Woo-min and Lee Joo-ho are also considered strong medal contenders. With Kim and Hwang kicking off South Korea's medal tally, attention now turns to how many more medals the team can secure.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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