South India Blocks Korean Archery: Bid to Sweep All 10 Gold Medals Fails... Missed All Three Compound Golds on Day One [Okazaki On-Site]

*This content was translated by AI.

The Korean archery team, which had set a goal of winning all 10 gold medals in archery at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya (Japan) Asian Games, missed all three gold medals available in the compound events on the first day of the finals.

The Korean archery compound team failed to stand atop the podium in any of the women's team event (bronze), mixed team event (silver), or men's team event (fourth place) at the Asian Games archery compound finals held on the 30th at the Multi-Purpose Plaza of Okazaki Central Comprehensive Park in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Ahead of this tournament, Korea aimed to sweep all 10 gold medals available in both recurve and compound events. Recurve is the traditional method of drawing the bowstring with arm strength, while compound involves using pulleys at both ends of the bow and a sight to shoot arrows. On the 30th, the semifinals and finals for the men's and women's compound team events and the mixed team event were held consecutively.

When archery compound was first adopted as an official event at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang (Indonesia) Games, Korea topped the podium in both the men's and women's team events as well as the mixed team event. However, at the 2022 Hangzhou (China) Games held in 2023, Korea ceded all five gold medals to India, including the newly added men's and women's individual events.

Since then, India has solidified its position as the "strongest" team in compound events, and unlike in recurve, Korea has become a challenger in compound. Chairman Han Yang-gung-hyeop (Chairman) of Hyundai Motor Group, who visited the venue on this day, said, "India is an exceptionally strong world-class team in compound events, and we are working hard to catch up." While Korea's competitiveness in recurve remains intact, the biggest hurdle in achieving the Korean Archery Association's goal of "sweeping 10 archery gold medals" ultimately lay in how much competitiveness Korea could demonstrate in compound, where the world's strongest team, India, stands firm.

As a result, Korean archery felt the "high wall" of India right from the first day. The women's team, consisting of Kang Yeon-seo (Seongsa Middle School), Park Jeong-yoon (Changwon City Hall), and Park Ye-rin (Korea National Sport University), lost to India 233-234 in the semifinals before defeating Taiwan 229-228 in the bronze medal match to claim bronze. The mixed team of Park Jeong-yoon and Choi Yong-hee (Hyundai Steel) also failed to stand atop the podium, losing to the Indian team in a shoot-off in the final. In the men's team event, featuring Choi Yong-hee, Kim Jong-ho (Hyundai Steel), and Choi Eun-gyu (Ulsan Namgu District Office), Korea suffered a 229-236 defeat to India by a margin of seven points. The men's team also lost in the bronze medal match, finishing without a medal.

Coincidentally, Korea lost to India in all three events—the men's and women's team events and the mixed team event—either failing to advance to the final or settling for silver. India swept all three events, firmly cementing its status as the top compound team. Korea's grand ambition to sweep all gold medals, from recurve to compound, also came to nothing after missing all three gold medals on the first day.

It was worth noting that athletes on site felt they were closing the gap with India. Park Jeong-yoon, who won bronze in the women's team event and silver in the mixed team event on this day, said, "I felt our competitiveness has improved significantly compared to India," adding, "When we actually competed against them, I didn't feel such a high wall; I thought it was within reach."

Choi Yong-hee, who also won silver in the mixed team event, added, "During the mixed team final, I thought we had to be satisfied with silver, but Indian athletes are human too, so they made a mistake at the end," and continued, "Of course, I also made a mistake at the end, but just as (Park) Jeong-yoon thought, I did have thoughts like 'it's within reach, what can't we do?'"

With three of the 10th gold medals decided, Korean archery will challenge for more golds through the compound men's and women's individual finals on the 1st, the recurve men's and women's team and mixed team finals on the 2nd, and the recurve men's and women's individual finals on the 3rd. In the compound women's individual event, Kang Yeon-seo and Park Jeong-yoon are preparing to compete, while Choi Yong-hee and Kim Jong-ho are set to compete in the men's division.

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

*This content was translated by AI.