"All the medalists from the Paris Olympics will be dispatched." Asian Games shooting national team competition begins

*This content was translated by AI.

The Korea Shooting Federation announced on the 3rd that it will hold the "2026 Aichi Prefecture-Nagoya Asian Games Shooting Team" at Changwon International Shooting Range in Gyeongsangnam-do for 23 days from the 4th to the 26th.

There are many players to pay particular attention to in this selection match. Yang Ji-in, the world No. 1 in the 25m women's pistol, is ranked 15th in the world in the 10m women's air pistol, boasting the world's best skills in multiple events, and Oh Ye-jin, the 10m women's air pistol gold medalist at the Paris Olympics, is also considered a strong favorite in both events, ranking 10th in the women's air pistol world and 4th in the 25m women's pistol world.

In the women's air rifle division, Kwon Eun-ji, ranked second in the world, attracts attention. After overcoming the regret of not being able to make the Olympic stage due to Ban Hyo-jin, who was a rookie at the time, he has continued his remarkable growth by breaking Korean records at international competitions. One of the biggest points to watch is the face-off against Ban Hyo-jin (7th in the world), a gold medalist in the 10-meter air rifle at the Paris Olympics. In the men's air rifle division, attention is focused on whether Park Ha-joon (11th in the world), a silver medalist at the Paris Olympics, will solidify his representative position.

Attention is focusing on whether Cho Young-jae, the silver medalist at the Paris Olympics, will make a comeback. Cho Young-jae surprised shooting officials by winning the first men's rapid fire pistol Olympic medal in Korean shooting history at the 2024 Paris Olympics, but failed to select the national team in 2025 and tasted bitter taste. Fans are paying attention to whether Cho Young-jae will be able to sound the gunfire of the revival in the selection match, which will be a challenge to save the pride of the Olympic silver medalist.

The selection match will be held by adding up the converted scores calculated as the top four records among the five competitions. It reflects not only the final score, but also the additional points according to the final ranking, and the additional points are only given to players who have scored more than the standard score for each event in the competition. In the case of rifle and pistol events, 1.2 points for the 10m air rifle and air pistol and 1 point for the 1st place for the 50m rifle 3 position are given, and 1.1 points are given to the 1st place in the final round for shotgun trap and skit events.

The number of participants will also be limited for each event. The 10-meter air rifle and 10-meter air pistol will be limited to 45 men and women, 30 men and women for the 50-meter rifle 3 positions, 24 men for the 25-meter rapid fire pistol, 30 women for the 25-meter pistol, 24 men and 10 women for the trap, and 16 men and 4 women for the skit. Qualifications for participation will be given in the order of records for the 2026 national team selection match, and additional qualifications were picked up for preliminary second-ranked players in the event of vacancy.

Kang Yeon-sul, president of the Korea Shooting Federation, said, "As this selection is an important process to select the best players for winning medals at the Asian Games, we will provide a fair and transparent environment for each player to perform at their best," adding, "We will spare no effort at the federation level to help Korean shooting continue its strongest position in Asia at the Aichi Prefecture-Nagoya Asian Games following the glory of the Paris Olympics."

Meanwhile, Kim Ye-ji, a silver medalist in the women's 10m air pistol at the Paris Olympics, did not participate in the 2025 season competition due to marriage and childbirth, so she was not eligible for the selection. However, Kim Ye-ji participated as a TV commentator in the selection match, cheering for her fellow players' heated competition on the spot. Public interest in the selection match is also expected to increase with the commentary of a world-renowned shooting star.

The representative players will be decided by the performance improvement committee on the 27th, the day after the selection match, and the final selection results will be released on the official website of the Korea Shooting Federation after the appeal period.

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*This content was translated by AI.