The South Korean men's handball team lost to Qatar 30-32 in the semifinals of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on September 28, failing to secure a spot in the finals as they aimed for a fourth consecutive title.
Under the guidance of head coach Jo Young-shin, Korea will compete against host nation Japan for the bronze medal on September 29.
The match started evenly, with Korea scoring its first goal just 43 seconds in, leading to a back-and-forth contest. At 12-11, center back Kim Jin-ho extended the lead, but after allowing Qatar to tie at 14-14, Korea regained the lead. However, a series of late goals from Qatar resulted in a 16-16 tie at halftime.
The second half remained competitive, but Qatar's star player Ahmad Madadi broke through Korea's defense at critical moments. With just 2 minutes and 26 seconds left, Qatar pulled ahead 28-32, effectively sealing the match. Despite a strong performance from goalkeeper Park Jae-yong, who recorded 13 saves, Korea could not overcome the two-goal deficit in the final moments.
Before the match, Coach Jo noted, "Qatar has strong mid-range scoring abilities, and we cannot compete with them using standard strategies," indicating a plan for aggressive defense and quick transitions. Although Korea had previously defeated Qatar 32-31 in the group stage of the Asian Championships in January, they could not replicate that success in this tournament.
Since winning five consecutive gold medals from the 1986 Seoul Games to the 2002 Busan Games, and a gold medal at the 2010 Guangzhou Games, Korea has not reached the finals since the 2014 Incheon Games.
Now, Korea will face Japan in the bronze medal match on September 29. A victory would mark their return to the podium for the first time since the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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