(2nd LD) (Asaid) S. Korea's Choi Ji-un wins gold in boys' dinghy sailing at Asian Games
(ATTN: ADDS comments in last 4 paras; CHANGES photos)
By Kim Boram
NAGOYA, Japan, Oct. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's teenage sailor Choi Ji-un won the gold medal in the boys' dinghy event in sailing at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Saturday, becoming the youngest gold medalist in the country's delegation.
Choi finished first in the event's final at Kaiyoh Yacht Harbor in Gamagori, some 50 kilometers southeast of the main host city of Nagoya.
The 15-year old athlete became the youngest gold medalist in the South Korean delegation at the Asian Games.
South Korea's Choi Ji-un celebrates with his gold medal after winning the boys' dinghy event in sailing at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Kaiyoh Yacht Harbor in Gamagori, some 50 kilometers southeast of the main host city of Nagoya, on Oct. 3, 2026, in this photo provided by Choi. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
It is the first time since the 2014 Incheon Asian Games that South Korea has won a boys' event in sailing.
Goh Ian of Singapore won silver, while Cheng de Villemor Salgado Tiago of Hong Kong won bronze.
In dinghy, sailors receive points equal to their finishing positions and penalties in each race of the opening series, with the lowest total winning the event. Athletes are allowed to discard scores from their worst two races after 12 races.
Choi was in fourth place after 10 races held the previous day but made a dramatic comeback by moving into first place over the final two races on Saturday.
He finished first in the 11th race and crossed the finish line second in the final race, finishing with 25 points overall, tied with Singapore's Goh.
Choi won the tiebreaker because he had higher finishes than Goh.
At the Asian Games, boys' and girls' dinghy events are contested in sailing to foster emerging talent in the sport.
South Korea won the gold medal in the men's dinghy event the previous day.
South Korea's Choi Ji-un reacts after winning the gold medal in the boys' dinghy event in sailing at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Kaiyoh Yacht Harbor in Gamagori, some 50 kilometers southeast of the main host city of Nagoya, on Oct. 3, 2026, in this photo provided by the Korea Sailing Federation. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Choi called his final races a "legend," delighted to become the youngest gold medalist in the team.
"I'm so pleased. It was a 'legend,'" he told Yonhap News Agency on the phone. "After I finished my race, my uncles tossed me in the air to celebrate," he said, referring to his teammates, including men's dinghy gold medalist Ha Jee-min, who is 37 years old.
He said he did not intend to stage the dramatic comeback in the final two races, but simply tried to empty his mind.
"Until yesterday, I cried a lot because I thought I couldn't make it. But I clenched my jaw and went through it until the end," he said. "I was far behind the leader, so I just emptied my mind and hoped to get the reward for my hard work."
South Korea's Choi Ji-un prepares for a race in the boy's dinghy event in sailing at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Kaiyoh Yacht Harbor in Gamagori, some 50 kilometers southeast of the main host city of Nagoya, on Oct. 2, 2026. (Yonhap)
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