South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan captured bronze in the men’s 200 m freestyle at the Incheon Asian Games on Sunday, failing in his bid for a third straight Asiad gold in the distance.

Park finished his race in 1:45.85 in the final held at his namesake arena, Munhak Park Tae-hwan Aquatics Center. It’s the host’s first swimming medal at this year’s Asiad.

Kosuke Hagino of Japan won the gold in 1:45.23. Sun Yang of China, considered Park‘s chief rival, came in second at 1:45.28.

Park was the fastest off the starting blocks with a reaction time of 0.64 seconds. He was the first in the race after the first 50 m at 24.57 seconds, with Hagino trailing at 24.71 seconds.

At the half-way turn, it was Sun in the lead at 51.26 seconds, with Park right behind at 51.41 seconds and Hagino further behind at 51.81. Sun touched the 150 m point at 1:18.30, only 0.04 second faster than Park and nearly a full second ahead of Hagino.

Then the 20-year-old Japanese kicked into high gear, covering the last 50 m in 26 seconds flat to pick up his first Asian Games gold.

Sun’s final 50 m lap time was 26.98, and Park was even slower, at 27.51.

In an interview immediately after the race, Park didn’t hide his disappointment. He said he was actually a bit nervous, a surprising admission for a seasoned swimmer who has competed in three Olympic games.

“There has been so much talk about winning the third straight Asian Games gold here,” Park said. “Honestly, I felt some weight on my shoulders. I gave my all, but I am walking away disappointed. I have more races remaining and I will try to put on good performances.”

Park wasted his fast start in Sunday’s race, falling behind Hagino over the final 50 m after leading him by nearly a full second through the first 150 m.

“I was on a good pace early on, but I fell off toward the end,” Park said. “I was a bit concerned before the final because I wasn’t at full strength during the warm-up.”

Park is slated to race in the 400 m freestyle on Tuesday. He said he is looking forward to going up against Sun once again. (Yonhap)