Kim Min-seop wins bronze in men's 200m butterfly swimming

The Korea Times - Sep 25, 2026

TOKYO — Kim Min-seop won his first individual Asian Games swimming medal on Friday with his bronze in the men's 200-meter butterfly event. Kim finished third with a time of 1:55.94 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, holding off Wang Xizhe of China by one-hundredth of a second. Wang Kuan-hung of Chinese Taipei won the gold in 1:55.05, and Xu Fang of China was the silver medalist at 1:55.65. Kim had earlier received silver in the men's 4x100m freestyle relay and bronze in the 4x200m freestyle relay for competing in the heats. In the butterfly final, Kim touched the 100m pad in second place and remained in the silver medal position with 50m to go. But he slowed considerably in the home stretch, as his final split of 30.74 seconds was the sixth-slowest in the 10-man final. "This was the first time I got into the 1:55 range since the Olympics (in 2024). And when I heard my parents and teammates screaming from the stands, I figured I had won a medal," Kim said. "Then when I saw the board, I saw No. 3 next to my name and I won bronze by 0.01 second. I felt really lucky." Kim, 22,...

Read full article

More News

Sep 25, 2026

S. Korea wins silver in women's epee team fencing at Asian Games

TOKONAME, Japan — South Korea won the silver medal in the women's epee team fencing at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Friday, failing to defend its Asiad title. The quartet of Song Se-ra, Lim Tae-hee, Yang Seung-hye and Lee Hye-in lost to China 45-28 in the gold medal match at Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, some 35 kilometers south of the main host city of Nagoya, Japan. South Korea won the event at the previous Hangzhou Asian Games but finished runner-up at the 2026 Games. Song, who won the individual epee title on Tuesday, took the silver in the team event. Bronze medals went to Singapore and Kazakhstan. Team fencing events are contested in nine head-to-head bouts. Each bout is three minutes long, but it ends when one team's score reaches a multiple of five. A team scoring 45 points first or having more points than the opponent at the end of the ninth bout wins the event. In the epee event, fencers use a thrusting weapon, targeting the entire body. South Korea won the first two bouts to build a narrow 7-6 lead. However, China pushed back and took a 15-13 lead in the third bout, and maintain

Sep 25, 2026

[Asian Games] S. Korea captures gold in men's 3x3 basketball

NAGOYA, Japan — South Korea won its first Asian Games gold medal in men's 3x3 basketball on Friday. South Korea beat Qatar 19-10 for the title at Kinjo Futo Station Square Venue in Nagoya. The South Korean team featured four collegiate players in Lee Ju-yeong, Kim Seung-woo, Lee Dong-geun and Ku Min-gyo, with each nation carrying a backup. Lee Ju-yeong led his team with nine points and drained three shots from behind the arc. Earlier in the day, the South Korean women's team beat Thailand 21-8 for the bronze medal. The South Korean men's team won gold in the 5x5 tournament last Sunday, and the women's 5x5 team reached the final by beating China in the semifinals on Friday. The 3x3 title was South Korea's 800th gold in its Asian Games history. The 3x3 basketball made its Asiad debut in 2018. South Korea won silver then and finished fourth in 2023, before reaching the pinnacle here Friday. The 3x3 game is played over a single 10-minute period, with shots from behind the arc counting as two-pointers and those inside the line counting for one point each. South Korea clung to a 6-4 lead at the h

Sep 25, 2026

S. Korea wins relay bronze to end swimming competition

TOKYO — South Korea ended the swimming competition of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Friday by winning bronze in the women's 4x100-meter medley relay. The team of Kim Seung-won, Park Si-eun, An Se-hyeon and Hur Yeon-kyung finished with a time of 4:00.67, placing behind China (3:54.55) and Japan (3:57.64) at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. This was South Korea's third swimming medal of Friday, following Lee Ju-ho's silver in the men's 200m backstroke and Kim Min-seop's bronze in the men's 200m butterfly. South Korea finished the Asian Games with one gold, six silver and 13 bronze medals in swimming. "I am so thankful that our medley relay team won a medal at the Asian Games, and I was so honored to have competed with these incredible athletes," Park said. The 19-year-old paid her respect to the 30-year-old veteran An. "Just having her around here gives us such a boost," Park said. "She gave me the courage to race in this relay event." Hur, 20, said An held the rest of the team together with her leadership. "She kept the mood light and made it fun for us to swim," Hur added, before cracking, "It loo

Sep 25, 2026

S. Korea wins 3 medals on last day of swimming

TOKYO — South Korea picked up three medals on the last day of the swimming competition at the ongoing Asian Games in Tokyo on Friday, finishing a couple of medals short of its gaudy total from three years ago. Lee Ju-ho won silver in the men's 200-meter backstroke at Tokyo Aquatics Centre in 1:56.58, 0.16 second back of Kodai Nishiono of Japan. Kim Min-seob grabbed bronze in the men's 200m butterfly for his first individual medal in Tokyo. Kim Seung-won, Park Si-eun, An Se-hyeon and Hur Yeon-kyung then won bronze in the women's 4x100m medley relay, the very last swimming event in Tokyo. South Korea ended with one gold medal, six silver medals and 13 bronze medals in Tokyo. The country swept up 22 medals at the 2023 Asiad in Hangzhou, China, including six gold medals. South Korea came to Tokyo trying to repeat that type of success, but was relegated to the background as China and Japan ran roughshod over the competition. South Korea's two alpha dogs, Hwang Sun-woo and Kim Woo-min, both finished without a gold medal after combining for five between them three years ago. Kim, in particular,

Sep 25, 2026

Kim Min-seop wins bronze in men's 200m butterfly swimming

Sep 25, 2026

S. Korea beats China to reach women's basketball final

NAGOYA—South Korea advanced to the women's basketball final after pulling off a come-from-behind victory over China at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Friday, moving a step closer to its first Asiad gold medal in 12 years. Guard Lee So-hee and forward Lee Hae-ran scored more than 20 points each to help South Korea defeat China 85-80 in the semifinals at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya. South Korea will take on the winner of Chinese Taipei and Japan on the other side of the draw in the final scheduled for Saturday. Coached by Park Soo-ho, South Korea is chasing its first gold medal in women's hoops since 2014 and its fifth overall. The men's national team won gold here Sunday. In the first quarter, South Korea's forwards struggled to get past China's 220-centimeter center Zhang Ziyu, ending the quarter down 19-17. The gap widened to 41-36 in the second quarter as South Korea had difficulty finding its range from three-point territory. Some timely three-pointers helped South Korea stay in a seesaw battle in the third quarter. Entering the fourth quarter down four points at 65-61, South