Hwang Sun-woo is aiming for a second consecutive title in the 200m freestyle at the Asian Games.
On September 23, at the Tokyo Aquatics Center, Hwang qualified for the final of the men's 200m freestyle at the 2026 Aichi Nagoya Asian Games with a time of 1:47.97, finishing second overall.
The reigning champion from the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games will compete for gold again at 5:24 PM at the same venue.
Hwang won the gold medal in this event at the 2022 Hangzhou Games with a time of 1:44.40 and set a new Asian record of 1:43.92 at last year's National Sports Festival. However, his teammate Kim Woo-min, who was also set to compete, withdrew due to a shoulder injury.
In addition to his individual event, Hwang also participated as the final swimmer in the mixed 400m medley relay preliminaries, helping the team advance to the finals. After the backstroke by Lee Eun-ji, breaststroke by Park Si-eun, and butterfly by Kim Ji-hoon, Hwang entered the water and closed the gap with the leading Chinese team by over three seconds, finishing with a total time of 3:54.02.
The South Korean mixed medley relay team, which finished fifth, aims to secure a medal for the second consecutive time after winning bronze at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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