Forward lifts S. Korea to men's hoops gold with sharpshooting, leadership

No one scored more points, made more three-pointers, grabbed more rebounds or had more steals in the entire tournament. Considering the stakes, it would not be an exaggeration to say Lee Hyun-jung played the best basketball of his life during his six-game run to the gold medal for South Korea at the Asian Games this month. Lee poured in 27 points and grabbed 18 boards to help South Korea beat Japan 67-57 for the gold medal at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan, on Sunday, the country's f

Sept. 21, 2026

S. Korean swimmers seek to defend relay title; football teams set for inter-Korean clash

South Korean swimming stars will seek to defend their men's relay title at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Monday, while the women's football team will face North Korea in the first all-Korean match of the Games. The team of Hwang Sun-woo, Kim Woo-min, Lee Ho-joon and Kim Young-beom will compete in the men's 4x200-meter freestyle relay at Tokyo Aquatics Centre in Tokyo. South Korea won the event for the first time at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023. Three years later, Kim Young-beom has joined

Sept. 21, 2026

Bus mix-up before Asiad final turns into source of motivation for S. Korean basketball team

Hours before the men's basketball final at the Asian Games on Sunday, the South Korean team had to cancel its pre-match shootaround after its scheduled shuttle bus failed to show up. The entire team had been waiting for a bus to take them to a practice gym for a shootaround around 10 a.m. from their hotel, ahead of the gold-medal match against host country Japan at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya at 7:40 p.m. "It was an incident that upset our players," said Lee Seoung-hyun, the captain of S

Sept. 21, 2026

Latvian-born hoops coach for S. Korea silences critics with gold

Nikolajs Mazurs lost his first three games in charge of the South Korean men's basketball team after being appointed last December, and the team lost more games than it won under the Latvian coach entering the Asian Games -- causing many to wonder if he was the right man to lead the squad back to glory at the quadrennial event. But with each passing game in central Japan, South Korea demonstrated marked improvements in all aspects, with its smothering defense and efficient offense. It all culmin

Sept. 21, 2026

[Graphic News] S. Korean baseball eyes Asian Games gold

South Korea will begin its bid for a fifth consecutive Asian Games baseball gold medal on Monday at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan. The baseball tournament runs until Sept. 27 at two venues in Aichi prefecture. Led by manager Ryu Ji-hyun, Korea's 24-man roster includes 11 pitchers, two catchers, seven infielders and four outfielders. Gwak Been, Kim Do-yeong, Moon Bo-gyeong and Cho Hyeong-woo have recent international experience, while Roh Si-hwan, Kim Ju-won and Yoon Dong-hee were pa

Sept. 21, 2026

Forward Lee Hyun-jung lifts S. Korea to men's hoops gold

No one scored more points, made more three-pointers, grabbed more rebounds or had more steals in the entire tournament. Considering the stakes, it would not be an exaggeration to say Lee Hyun-jung played the best basketball of his life during his six-game run to the gold medal for South Korea at the Asian Games this month. Lee poured in 27 points and grabbed 18 boards to help South Korea beat Japan 67-57 for the gold medal at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan, on Sunday, the country's f

Sept. 20, 2026

Latvian-born hoops coach for S. Korea silences critics with gold

Nikolajs Mazurs lost his first three games in charge of the South Korean men's basketball team after being appointed last December, and the team lost more games than it won under the Latvian coach entering the Asian Games -- causing many to wonder if he was the right man to lead the squad back to glory at the quadrennial event. But with each passing game in central Japan, South Korea demonstrated marked improvements in all aspects, with its smothering defense and efficient offense. It all culmin

Sept. 20, 2026

S. Korea snatches 4 gold medals on 1st day after opening ceremony

South Korea wasted little time jumping into the thick of the medal race at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, as it swept up four gold medals and 14 medals overall Sunday, the first day following the opening ceremony in central Japan. The first gold medal came, as expected, from modern pentathlon, where Seong Seung-min soared to the women's individual title. She became the first South Korean female pentathlete to win an Asian Games individual title. Seong finished with 1,492 points after competing in

Sept. 20, 2026

S. Korea reaches semis in women's volleyball at Asian Games after win over Kazakhstan

South Korea reached the semifinals of women's volleyball at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after defeating Kazakhstan in straight sets in the quarterfinals Sunday. The team beat Kazakhstan 3-0 (26-24, 27-25, 25-21) at Park Arena Komaki, just north of Nagoya, Japan. South Korea will face Japan in the semifinals, scheduled for Monday at the same venue. Japan defeated Chinese Taipei 3-0 in the quarterfinals. It was the first time in eight years that South Korea has advanced to the women's volleyball

Sept. 20, 2026

S. Korea beats Japan for men's basketball gold

South Korea defeated the home team Japan 67-57 for the men's basketball gold medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Sunday. Forward Lee Hyun-jung scored 13 of his game-high 27 points in the decisive third quarter at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, as South Korea ended its 12-year gold medal drought in men's hoops. Lee, a former Davidson player, also led everyone with 18 rebounds. The victory capped an unbeaten run for South Korea, which had earlier defeated Japan 100-83 in the group stage

Sept. 20, 2026

Inaugural men's teqball champion thanks mother for sacrifice

It may take a village to raise a child, but it takes a supportive, selfless mother to raise an Asian Games gold medalist. Just ask Lee Jun-suk, who captured the very first Asian Games gold medal in the men's singles teqball event in Nagoya on Sunday. Lee defeated Ali Jalil Mezher Alelayawi of Iraq 2-0 (12-11, 12-5) in the final at Nagoya City Higashi Sports Center in Nagoya, Japan, where teqball -- a hybrid sport played on a curved table that combines elements of football, table tennis and sepak

Sept. 20, 2026

S. Korea wins Asian Games gold in team modern pentathlon event

South Korea won gold in the men's modern pentathlon team event at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Sunday, successfully defending its title. In the men's modern pentathlon final, South Korean athletes Jun Woong-tae, Lee Jong-hyeon and Seo Chang-wan scored a combined 4,779 points after competing in five events -- fencing, swimming, obstacle course racing and laser run, a combination of running and shooting -- at Anjo Sports Park in Anjo, just southeast of the main host city of Nagoya, Japan. It wa

Sept. 20, 2026

S. Korea reaches semis in women's volleyball at Asian Games after win over Kazakhstan

South Korea reached the semifinals of women's volleyball at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after defeating Kazakhstan in straight sets in the quarterfinals Sunday. The team beat Kazakhstan 3-0 (26-24, 27-25, 25-21) at Park Arena Komaki, just north of Nagoya, Japan. South Korea will face either Japan or Chinese Taipei in the semifinals, scheduled for Monday at the same venue. It was the first time in eight years that South Korea has advanced to the women's volleyball semifinals at the Asian Games s

Sept. 20, 2026

Kim Young-beom, Hwang Sun-woo take silver, bronze in men's 100m freestyle swimming

Kim Young-beom and Hwang Sun-woo captured silver and bronze medals in the men's 100-meter freestyle swimming race at the Asian Games on Sunday, the first two of what South Korea is hoping will be many medals from the pool. Kim finished second in 47.65 seconds at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, just 0.04 behind the champion, Pan Zhanle of China. Hwang ended in third place in 47.79 seconds. Tokyo is hosting all swimming races while the central city of Nagoya serves as the main host of the quadrennial compe

Sept. 20, 2026

S. Korea wins Asian Games gold in team modern pentathlon event

South Korea won gold in the men's modern pentathlon team event at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Sunday, successfully defending its title. In the men's modern pentathlon final, South Korean athletes Jun Woong-tae, Lee Jong-hyeon and Seo Chang-wan scored a combined 4,779 points after competing in five events -- fencing, swimming, obstacle course racing and laser run, a combination of running and shooting -- at Anjo Sports Park in Anjo, just southeast of the main host city of Nagoya, Japan. It wa

Sept. 20, 2026