'Iron Athletes' and 'Foot Table Tennis' Break Through for Gold... South Korea Fires Three Golden Salvos in One Day [Nagoya AG]

[Financial News] A grand golden anthem for South Korea rang out across a restless Nagoya. On the 20th, as the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games entered the medal race in earnest, South Korea's national team swept three gold medals in a single day, finally breaking through a stalled gold-medal run. Modern pentathlon, a reliable source of medals, produced gold medals in both the women's and men's events, while Teqball also crowned its inaugural champion, giving South Korea a flying start.
The first gold medal of the Games for the South Korean delegation went to Seong Seung-min of Korea National Sport University, the leading figure in South Korean women's modern pentathlon. In the women's modern pentathlon final held at Anjo Sports Park in Aichi Prefecture on the 20th, Seong totaled 1,492 points across fencing, swimming, the obstacle event and the laser run (running and shooting), taking the top spot on the podium.
After winning bronze at the 2024 Paris Olympics as the first Asian woman to earn an Olympic medal in the event, she reached another landmark by becoming the first South Korean woman to win an individual modern pentathlon gold medal at the Asian Games. At these Games, where the obstacle event was introduced in place of riding, she also set a dominant personal best of 29.26 seconds and became the event's inaugural champion. Seong further demonstrated her credentials as a complete ace by winning a team silver medal alongside Kim Eun-ju and Su-Min Shin.

The women's team's golden salvo was immediately followed by good news from the men's team. Led by Jun Woong-tae of the Gangwon-do Sports Council, a mainstay of South Korean men's modern pentathlon, the men's team featuring Seo Chang-wan of the Jeollanam-do Provincial Government and Lee Jong-hyun of Daejeon Metropolitan City Hall rose to the top after a dominant race in the team event held at the same venue. South Korea's second gold medal of the Games also came from modern pentathlon. In the team event, which ranks teams by combining the results of their top three individual performers, South Korea displayed flawless stamina and tight teamwork, proving to the world that it has no remaining rivals on the Asian stage.

A thrilling golden uprising by an unfamiliar new sport unfolded at Nagoya Higashi Sports Center.
Lee Jun-seok was the protagonist in the Teqball men's singles final, a sport known as 'foot table tennis.' He defeated Iraq's Ali Jalil Mezher Al-Alyawi 2-0 in sets (12-11, 12-5), giving the South Korean delegation its third gold medal. It was the moment Teqball's first-ever Asian Games champion was crowned, as the sport made its official debut at these Games.
Nervous early in the first set, Lee fell behind 0-3 after committing a series of service errors, but he soon showed remarkable focus. With clever play, he forced his opponent into mistakes and completed a dramatic comeback to lead 10-9. After a tense deuce battle, he took the first set 12-11. Riding the momentum into the second set, Lee put heavy pressure on his opponent from the outset and sealed a dominant 12-5 victory before letting out a roar.

Despite numerous adverse conditions at the start of the Games, including poor conditions in the athletes' village and inadequate infrastructure, South Korea's athletes quietly continued to sweat through their training. On the first day of the full medal race, they collected three gold medals in a single stroke and set the broader medal campaign in motion. The 'Golden Day,' completed by the roars of iron athletes who pushed beyond their limits and the surprise uprising of a new sport, signals South Korea's unstoppable golden charge in Nagoya.
[email protected] Jeon Sang-il Reporter