The South Korean archery team had a strong start at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, advancing to the semifinals in both the recurve and compound men's and mixed team events on the tournament's first day.
The men's recurve team, consisting of Kim Je-deok (Yecheon County), Kim Woo-jin (Cheongju City), and Lee Woo-seok (Kolon), defeated Mongolia 5-3 in the quarterfinals held at the Okazaki Central Park in Aichi Prefecture on September 27. They will compete against Taiwan for a spot in the finals on October 2.
The women's recurve team, aiming for their eighth consecutive title, also progressed smoothly. Kang Chae-young, Lee Yoon-ji (both from Hyundai Mobis), and Oh Ye-jin (Gwangju Bank) secured a 5-3 victory over Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals and will face Indonesia on October 2.
In the mixed team event, Kim Je-deok and Kang Chae-young, who ranked highest among South Korean players in the ranking round, dominated Qatar 6-0 in the round of 16 and defeated Mongolia 5-3 in the quarterfinals, earning a place in the semifinals against China on October 2.
The compound teams also secured their spots in the semifinals for both men's and mixed events. The men's compound team, featuring Choi Yong-hee, Kim Jong-ho (both from Hyundai Steel), and Choi Eun-kyu (Ulsan Nam-gu), triumphed over Iran with a score of 239 to 234 in the quarterfinals.
The women's team, composed of Park Jeong-yoon (Changwon City), Kang Yeon-seo (Seongsa Middle School), and Park Ye-rin (Korea National Sport University), tied with Thailand at 230 in the quarterfinals but won the subsequent shoot-off 29-28.
Both the men's and women's teams will face defending champion India in the finals on September 30.
Choi Yong-hee and Park Jeong-yoon made history in the mixed compound event, achieving a perfect score of 160 points by hitting all 16 arrows in the center of the target during their round of 16 match against Japan. They later defeated Iran in a shoot-off in the quarterfinals.
The semifinals against China will take place on September 30.
The archery team, consisting of 12 recurve and compound athletes, will compete for medals at the multipurpose venue in Okazaki until October 3.
A total of 10 gold medals are up for grabs in this tournament, with five each in recurve and compound events, including individual, team, and mixed team competitions.
South Korean archery has historically excelled, winning all gold medals in the four recurve events at the 1990 Beijing, 1998 Bangkok, 2006 Doha, and 2010 Guangzhou Games. However, since the compound event was included as an official category at the 2014 Incheon Games, they have not swept all golds.
At the previous 2023 Hangzhou Games, South Korea claimed four out of five golds in recurve but lost all five compound golds to India, finishing second in the overall medal standings for archery.
The recurve team aims to reclaim the men's individual title lost in Hangzhou and is determined to carry the momentum from their five gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics into the Asian Games.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.