The '198cm Human Torpedo' who swallowed Asia, Kim Young-beom, kept his promise to become a legend... Gold in men's 50m freestyle + two new records set within half a day [Aichi Nagoya AG]

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Young-beom (20, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Government) set a new tournament record in the men's 50m freestyle at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, securing South Korea's first gold medal in swimming at this event.

On the 21st, Kim Young-beom claimed first place with a tournament-record time of 21.66 seconds in the men's 50m freestyle final held at Tokyo Aquatics Centre in Tokyo, Japan.

Starting from lane 4, he entered the water with a reaction time of 0.66 seconds and surged to the lead with explosive speed. Earlier that morning, Kim had already broken the previous Asian Games record (21.72 seconds by Ji Yu-chan in 2022) with a time of 21.71 seconds in the preliminary heats, then improved his own record by another 0.05 seconds in the final.

The silver medal went to Hong Kong's Ian Yentou Ho, who recorded 21.76 seconds. Ji Yu-chan (Daegu Metropolitan City Government), who aimed for back-to-back titles after winning last tournament, touched the pad with a time of 21.94 seconds to claim the bronze medal. With this result, South Korea achieved consecutive gold medals in the men's 50m freestyle at the Asian Games for the second time.

Having won a silver medal (47.65 seconds) just hours earlier in the men's 100m freestyle final against world record holder Pan Zhanle of China by a narrow margin of 0.04 seconds, Kim Young-beom secured both gold and silver medals within two days, establishing himself as the face of South Korean sprint swimming.

Standing at 198cm tall, Kim Young-beom is the tallest swimmer ever to represent South Korea in national competitions. His weapon lies in his overwhelming stroke powered by long limbs and powerful starts. He began swimming in first grade of elementary school and switched to specializing in sprint events during his second year of high school. Last year, he emerged as a standout competitor by setting a new Korean record of 47.39 seconds in the 100m at the National Sports Festival. Although he faced a major setback earlier this year due to a lumbar disc injury, he overcame the pressure through training and reached the top of the podium.

Having proven his clear competitiveness on the Asian stage through this tournament, Kim Young-beom had previously expressed his ambitious goal via the Korean Sports Council before the opening ceremony: "I want to break into the 46th-second range in the 100m freestyle and be remembered as a legendary athlete representing Asia." His success has also brightened South Korea's prospects for reaching the global stage at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

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*This content was translated by AI.