'女 Swimming Long-distance Sign' Han Ha-kyung Breaks New Record → Confirmed to participate in AG for the third consecutive time, "I will not lose my initial commitment.""

*This content was translated by AI.

Han Da-kyung (26, Jeollabuk-do Sports Council), the "Korean women's long-distance swimming sign," will take the Asian Games (AG) stage for the third consecutive time, once again surpassing the Korean record she set.

According to the Korea Swimming FederationGyeong won the women's 800m freestyle final on the third day of the "2026 KB Financial Korea Swimming Championship" held at Gimcheon Indoor Swimming Pool in Gyeongsangbuk-do on the 25th, setting a new Korean record for the first time in the competition.

It was an overwhelming race that advanced the previous record (8:36.78) set at the Busan National Sports Festival in October 2025 by 1 second and 16 seconds in about five months. With the new record, Handa Kyung also received a reward of 1 million won from the Korea Swimming Federation.

Above all, the valuable harvest is the right to participate in the Asian Games. With the victory of this tournament, Handa-kyung will wear the Asian Games national flag for the third consecutive time after Jakarta and Palembang in 2018 and Hangzhou in 2022. Han Ha-kyung, who remained in sixth place in both the previous two Asian Games, is now aiming to enter the medal table.

After the game, Han Da-kyung said through the federation, "In fact, there are many moments when it is difficult to endure a long distance than before because I have quite a lot of years of experience, but thanks to the encouragement from my parents, coaches, and team members, my anxiety and shortcomings have been filled," adding, "I have always been disappointed in my performance at international competitions, but this time I will not lose my initial commitment and shorten my record."

In the men's category, Kim Woo-min (Gangwon Provincial Government) won the men's 800m freestyle with a record of 7:46.91 and won the competition twice following 1,500m. Kim Woo-min did not hide his greed for the multi-crowd king, saying, "I will focus on the remaining 100m, 200m, and 400m and produce good results."

An unusual event happened in the short distance. Kim Young-beom (Gangwon Provincial Government), who competed in the men's 100m freestyle final, recorded 48.17 seconds, beating "grand senior" Hwang Sun-woo (48.30 seconds) by 0.13 seconds to rank No. 1 in the event for the second consecutive year. Kim Young-beom said, "My goal is to win a gold medal at the Asian Games, but I'm sorry for the record now. I will prepare harder for the remaining six months," he said.

In addition, in the 200m individual medley, Kim Ji-hoon (1:59.85 at Daejeon Metropolitan City Hall) and Lee Dong-eun (2:13.48 at Jeollabuk-do Sports Council) won the top of the men's and women's divisions, respectively. In the women's 100m freestyle, Korean record holder Heo Yeon-kyung (Daejeon Metropolitan Facilities Management Corporation) ranked first with 54.96 seconds, winning a ticket to the Asian Games.

The Korean Swimming Federation plans to finally select the first-place athletes in each event until the 28th as the national team for the 2026 Aichi and Nagoya Asian Games after approval by the Korean Sports Council.

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*This content was translated by AI.