(Asiad) S. Korea falls short of target as gap with Japan widens

NAGOYA, Japan, Oct. 5 (Yonhap) -- For the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games that ended with the closing ceremony Sunday night, South Korea had set out to win 40 to 45 gold medals and narrow its gap with Japan in the medal race.

The country accomplished neither of those goals.

South Korea finished with 39 gold medals for its third consecutive third-place finish, behind China and Japan, and this was also South Korea's fewest gold medal tally since taking home 28 in 1982.

The gap between South Korea and Japan was much bigger than that between South Korea and the fourth-place finisher, India, which finished with 21 gold medals.

The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) had projected it would be difficult for South Korea to catch Japan, which it thought would enjoy home field advantage. After South Korea finished 10 gold medals behind Japan at the 2023 Asiad, at 52-42 -- compared to a 75-49 deficit in 2018 -- the KSOC said the objective this time would be to reduce that gap even further.

However, Japan pulled away early, with South Korea not earning as many medals from some sports as it had hoped.

During the first week of the medal race, South Korea picked up just one gold medal from swimming, a sport where it had won six gold medals in 2023.

In the latter part of the competition, South Korea managed only three gold medals from archery, with one gold from compound and two more from recurve.

This is the lowest total of archery titles for South Korea at an Asiad since the compound discipline made its debut in 2014. Also, South Korea failed to win a women's archery gold for the first time since the sport was added to the Asian Games in 1978.

South Korea had also eyed five gold medals in shooting but left with three. South Korea managed three gold medals in taekwondo, its traditional martial art, with only one of them coming from the "kyorugi," or sparring, discipline.

Not getting any gold from table tennis and wrestling also hurt South Korea in the medal race.

The country had high expectations in judo, with Japan, home of judo, deciding to send its top athletes to the overlapping world championships instead of the Asian Games. South Korea failed to take advantage, settling for one gold by Huh Mimi as other hopefuls lost to athletes from China, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Ryu Seung-min, president of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC), acknowledged South Korea will have its work cut out to remain a force in Asia.

"It is no longer just China and Japan; teams from Central and Southeast Asia are improving rapidly," Ryu said Sunday at a press conference with South Korean media in Nagoya. "It is true that we did not live up to expectations in some sports. And this was an important occasion for us to see where we stand with the next Summer Olympics in Los Angeles two years away. We at the KSOC will carry out a detailed analysis on results here and take a look at all the elements that can affect athletes' performances, such as training systems and sports science."

On a positive note, South Korea did get a boost from basketball -- winning both the men's and the women's gold medals for the first such sweep in 12 years while also winning the men's 3x3 title.

The country received gold medals from other team sports such as baseball, men's football and women's handball.

South Korea had a solid fencing campaign with four gold medals and 10 medals overall, after winning six gold medals at each of the past two editions of the Asian Games.

"In the days leading up to this event, I stressed that this Asiad would be a key part of the buildup process for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics," Ryu said. "We will listen more closely to athletes and coaches as we move forward, and make sure we present a stronger version of Team Korea in LA."