Team Korea claims first gold medal in Tokyo
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| Korean archers An San, left, and Kim Je-deok pose with their gold medals from the mixed team event during the medal ceremony at the Yumenoshima Park Archery Field in Tokyo, Saturday. Yonhap |
Favored athletes fail to win gold
By Kang Seung-woo
Korea brought home the first gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics in the mixed team archery event Saturday, the first official day of the quadrennial sporting event. In addition, it also claimed a bronze each in taekwondo and fencing.
However, it failed to live up to expectations of its gold medal predictions, with top medal contenders in taekwondo, shooting and fencing crashing out. Team Korea had expected to bag as many as five gold from its core sports on the so-called "golden day," and so the sluggish start comes as a warning regarding the country's goal of making a top-10 finish for a fifth straight time.
As of 10 p.m., Korea ranked third with one gold and two bronze after China with two gold and one bronze and Japan with one gold and one silver.
Its gold medal chase will continue, Sunday, as the women's archery team, which has won every gold medal since the event debuted in 1988, will seek to keep the streak alive, while three-time taekwondo world champion Lee Dae-hoon and An Ba-ul, a silver medal-winning judoka at the Rio Olympics in 2016, are set to begin their hunts for gold.
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| Kim Jung-hwan, right, rejoices with an official at the Makuhari Messe Hall B in Chiba after winning a bronze medal in the men's individual sabre at the Tokyo Olympics, Saturday. Yonhap |
In the archery mixed team event that was making its Olympic debut, Olympic rookies An San, 20, and Kim Je-deok, 17, defeated Gabriela Schloesser and Steve Wijler of the Netherlands 5-3 at the Yumenoshima Park Archery Field in Tokyo. Mexico won the bronze medal.
The An-Kim pair has added another Olympic 안전놀이터추천 medal to the nation's already-decorated trophy cases of 23 archery gold earned up to the previous Summer Games, more than any other country.
The gold has set An and Kim eying respective trebles in Tokyo as they will also compete in the upcoming team and individual events, where Korean archers have been a dominant force.
"I'm really glad to take the gold medal. It's the first time for both women and men here at the Tokyo Olympics, so I'm really happy to take the gold medal for the first time," An said.
Kim also said, "I'm really happy to take a gold medal. It has really taken a long time training and it's meaningful to me."
In the men's fencing, Kim Jung-hwan claimed a bronze in the individual sabre event after defeating Sandro Bazadze of Georgia to add to his personal medal haul of one gold and one bronze. The 37-year-old was a member of the gold-winning squad at the London Games in 2012 and also finished third in Rio de Janeiro five year ago.
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| Jang Jun celebrates with the national flag at the Makuhari Messe Hall A in Chiba after winning bronze in the men's 58 kilograms taekwondo competitionat the Tokyo Olympics, Saturday. Yonhap |
Jang Jun took bronze in the men's 58-kilogram taekwondo competition. The 21-year-old, the 2019 world champion, was a gold medal favorite, but he was stunned by Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi of Tunisia in the semifinals. In the bronze medal match, he easily defeated Omar Salim of Hungary 46-16 to win his first Olympic medal.
Despite earning three medals, some Korean athletes, who had been highly favored to win gold in the lead-up to the Tokyo Games, had an unexpected early exit.
In the men's shooting, four-time Olympic champion Jin Jong-oh saw his Olympic swansong end early after failing to qualify for the final of the men's 10-meter air pistol.
The 41-year-old, who was seeking to win a gold medal at four consecutive Summer Games, aggregated 576 out of 600 points at the Asaka Shooting Range to finish 15th well outside the eight-person final. The defending three-time champion in the 50-meter pistol also won the 10-meter event in 2012.
"What can I say? I am just devastated," Jin said. "I don't know what else to say. I have to regroup and prepare for the mixed event next."
Jin will compete in the mixed 10-meter pistol event, scheduled for Tuesday.
Another hard loss to swallow is that no Korean taekwondo practitioners made it to the top podium, as highlighted by Sim Jae-young, the two-time defending world champion in the women's 46-kilogram class who was denied a semifinal berth after losing to Miyu Yamada of Japan in the 49-kilogram class.
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| Jin Jong-oh leaves the Asaka Shooting Range in Tokyo, Saturday, after failing to qualify for the final stage in the men's 10-meter air pistol. Yonhap |
Although Korea was awarded a bronze in fencing, Oh Sang-uk, top-ranked in the sabre, was upset by Bazadze in the quarterfinals, while ninth-ranked Gu Bon-gil was eliminated in the round 32.
Scaled-back opening ceremony
When the long-awaited opening ceremony was finally held Friday evening after a one-year delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Korean delegation, led by co-flag bearer volleyball player Kim Yeon-koung and swimmer Hwang Sun-woo, entered the nearly-empty Olympic Stadium 103rd based on the Japanese alphabet.
Amid the prolonged pandemic, the Olympic organizer decided to hold the event without spectators due to the city's coronavirus state of emergency.
Greece, home to the first Games held, was the first nation to march in the Parade of Nations, while France and the United States, the future host countries for the Summer Games in 2024 and 2028, preceded Japan, which went last.
All Olympic athletes marched into the stadium to iconic video game music such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.
This time, the Korean delegation is comprised of 232 athletes and 122 officials in 29 events, but only 22 athletes from four sports and six officials, including chief delegate Jang In-hwa, participated in the ceremony due to COVID-19 concerns.
Naomi Osaka, the first Japanese player to win a Grand Slam singles title, lit the Olympic torch, and Japanese Emperor Naruhito declared the Games officially open, with the Olympic Flag being raised at the stadium.
Titled "United by Emotion," the ceremony was produced on Tokyo's hopes of bringing the world together through sport during the pandemic.
Also, a moment of silence was held during the event to remember those who have died od COVID-19.
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