The South Korean men's 400m relay team earned a bronze medal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, setting a new national record despite overcoming a disqualification.
Composed of Seo Min-jun (Seocheon County Office), Namadi Joel Jin (Yecheon County Office), Lee Jae-sung (Gwangju City Hall), and Biwesa Daniel Gasama (Ansan City Hall), the team finished third in the final held on September 28 at the Mizuhoko Park athletics stadium in Nagoya, Japan, with a time of 38.43 seconds.
China claimed the gold medal with a time of 38.17 seconds, while Taiwan took silver at 38.32 seconds.
The 38.43 seconds recorded by Seo, Joel Jin, Lee, and Biwesa is a new national record, surpassing the previous mark of 38.49 seconds set at the Asian Athletics Championships in May 2022 by 0.06 seconds.
This achievement came after a tumultuous journey. In the preliminary round held on September 27, the team was initially disqualified due to a ruling that the baton exchange between first runner Kim Si-on (Military Athletic Corps) and second runner Joel Jin had occurred outside the designated takeover zone. However, following an appeal by the Korea Athletics Federation, the decision was overturned, allowing the team to advance to the finals with a recognized preliminary time of 39.33 seconds, placing them seventh overall.
After the appeal process, nine teams (Singapore, Sri Lanka, Oman, China, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, and Korea) competed in the final, with Korea assigned to the challenging first lane.
Despite the unfavorable conditions, the race unfolded smoothly. Seo Min-jun started steadily, followed by Joel Jin's acceleration on the straightaway. Lee Jae-sung navigated the curve, and anchor runner Biwesa finished just 0.06 seconds ahead of Thailand, crossing the line in third place.
This result marks the third medal for South Korea in the men's 400m relay at the Asian Games, following victories in the 1986 Seoul Games and the 2022 Hangzhou Games. The team has now reached the podium in consecutive tournaments.
Meanwhile, the women's 400m relay team, consisting of Kim Joo-ha (Siheung City Hall), Seo Ji-hyun (Jincheon County Office), Kim Myung-ji (Jeongseon County Office), and Kim Seo-yoon (Changwon City Hall), finished seventh in the final with a time of 44.81 seconds among eight teams.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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