Asian Games glory: Korea reaches 800 golds, nears 2,500 medals overall

NAGOYA — Korea has reached a historic milestone of winning a total of 800 gold medals at the Asian Games, an achievement that marks 72 years of sporting excellence, dating back to the country's first appearance at the competition's second edition in Manila in 1954. Korea's men's 3x3 basketball team defeated Qatar 19-10 in the final of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, Friday, clinching the gold medal. The victory marked the country's first-ever Asian Games gold in men's 3x3 basketball and its 800th gold medal overall at the Games. Korea had won 787 gold medals through the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, held in 2023. The country added 13 more by Friday, the sixth day of competition, to reach the 800-medal milestone. Seong Seung-min of Korea National Sport University opened the country's gold medal tally with a victory in modern pentathlon on the opening day, followed by a string of gold medals across various sports. On Friday, veteran Cho Gwang-hee and rising star Kim Hyo-bin of the canoe sprint team became the first Korean athletes to win two gold medals each at the Games