"Men's basketball is in its golden age, but we are not." Women's basketball coach Park Soo-ho points out the 'bittersweet reality' despite winning the gold medal [Nagoya on-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

South Korea's men's and women's basketball national teams have both won gold medals at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. This marks the first time since the 2014 Incheon Games, a span of 12 years. The Nam Ja (CEO) team, led by Lee Hyun-jung, was the first to defeat Japan and claim the top spot, followed by the Yeo Ja (CEO) team continuing that momentum. With the addition of the men's 3x3 basketball gold medal, a total of three gold medals were won in the basketball events at this tournament alone.

With both men's and women's teams standing atop Asia, the expression "golden age of Korean basketball" naturally arises. The Nam Ja (CEO) team achieved a radical generational shift centered on young players in their 20s, such as Lee Hyun-jung (26) and Yeo Jun-seok (24), winning all six matches to claim the championship, earning praise for ushering in a golden age. In women's basketball, despite the absence of two key players Park Ji-soo and Park Ji-hyun, the team reached the summit of Asia led by the performances of young players such as Lee Hye-ran (23) and Lee So-hee (26).

However, coach Park Soo-ho, who led the Yeo Ja (CEO) team to their first championship in 12 years, calmly pointed out the reality. In a press conference following the women's basketball final against Japan at the Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan on the 26th, where his team won 75-70, he sharply stated regarding the "golden age" expression linked to the dual victory of the men's and Yeo (CEO) teams: "To be honest, it is true that men's basketball is in its golden age. However, I do not consider women's basketball to be in a golden age."

Coach Park Soo-ho stated, "I cannot say everything here, but there are too many shortcomings in women's basketball. This gold medal is the result of all 11 players working extremely hard. It was a great achievement given the lack of available players." He added, "I hope this championship and gold medal will serve as an inspiration for young players. I wish for the expansion of basketball's base to proceed well." The environment for women's basketball remains still harsh compared to men's basketball, making it difficult to associate this women's gold medal with a "golden generation."

Coach Park's opinion was not significantly different from that of captain Kang Yi-seul, who has been active as a national team player for 12 years. She said, "Ultimately, we won the gold medal and played many games that could overturn external evaluations. I feel like it is a timing when women's basketball can move forward, so personally, I find this very meaningful." While attaching significance to this achievement, she also pointed out the sad reality of the limited player pool in women's basketball.

Kang Yi-seul said, "In fact, isn't the player pool for women's basketball not good? There are too few players; compared to Japan or China, it is less than half. I really want people to say that women's basketball is fun, and I hope many young friends play basketball so that many talented individuals emerge." She continued, "I hope that with this (gold medal) as an opportunity, more talented young friends will emerge, and we can continue this momentum in the future."

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*This content was translated by AI.