First AG medal on her 19th birthday! Paris super rookie Ban Hyo-jin wins bronze in women's 10m air rifle individual event... Grand Slam still not complete [Aichi Nagoya AG]

*This content was translated by AI.

'Paris Olympics super rookie' Ban Hyo-jin (19, Daegu Public Facilities Management Corporation) won her first-ever Asian Games medal on her 19th birthday.

On the 20th at the General Shooting Range in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, during the women's 10m air rifle individual final of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, Ban Hyo-jin scored 230.4 points and finished third among eight competitors to claim the bronze medal. The gold medal went to Hinata Daichi of Japan with 253.0 points, and the silver medal was awarded to Elavenil Valarivan of India with 252.4 points.

This is her first medal at her debut Asian Games. Born on September 20, 2007, Ban Hyo-jin stood on the Asian Games podium for the first time on her birthday. She showed top-level performance from the preliminary round. Shooting a total of 634.9 points, she advanced to the final in second place behind Wang Zifei of China (636.8 points).

In the early stages of the final, she was somewhat sluggish. After the first five shots, she recorded 52.2 points and remained in fifth place, but after the next five shots, she scored 52.7 points, bringing her total to 104.9 points and moving up to third place.

In the subsequent single-shot rounds, she alternated between second and third place while chasing the leaders. However, she could not close the gap with Valarivan and also allowed Daichi to catch up. After the 17th and 18th shots, Ban Hyo-jin dropped to third place and ultimately failed to change her ranking, securing the bronze medal after completing her 22nd shot.

There was also significant disappointment. Ban Hyo-jin aimed to achieve the first-ever 'individual Grand Slam' in South Korean women's shooting history at this tournament. At the 2024 Paris Olympics women's 10m air rifle event, she became the youngest gold medalist in South Korea's summer Olympic history at just 16 years and 313 days old. She also set a historic record as the 100th gold medalist for South Korea in summer Olympics.

Her momentum continued into last year. By winning the 2025 International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Championships, she stood atop both the Olympic and world championship podiums. Had she also won the individual event at this Asian Games, she would have completed a historic achievement by becoming the first South Korean woman to win the individual events at the Olympics, World Championships, and Asian Games.

This time, she could not complete the final piece. However, for Ban Hyo-jin, who has just turned 19, the challenge of the Grand Slam is far from over. If she can return to the top of the individual event at the next Asian Games, there remains an opportunity to complete this historic achievement.

Even at this tournament, Ban Hyo-jin's gunshots have not yet stopped. After swallowing her disappointment in the individual event, she now aims for gold medals again in the remaining women's team and mixed team events. Meanwhile, Kwon Yu-na (Woori Bank), who also advanced to the final, was the first of the eight competitors to finish with a score of 124 points.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.