Modern pentathlete Kim Sun-woo wins Korea's first medal at Asiad

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Published: 24 Sep. 2023, 14:56 Updated: 25 Sep. 2023, 17:00

Modern pentathlete Kim Sun-woo wins Korea's first medal at Asiad

Kim Sun-woo competes in the laser-run during the women's individual modern pentathlon at the Asian Games at Fuyang Yinhu Sports Centre in Hangzhou, China on Sunday. [YONHAP]

Modern pentathlete Kim Sun-woo won Korea’s first medal of the 19th Asian Games on Sunday, finishing second in the women’s modern pentathlon to claim her third consecutive Asiad medal.

Kim scored a total 1,386 points to take silver after the laser-run at Fuyang Yinhu Sports Centre in Hangzhou, finishing 20 points behind Zhang Mingyu of China in first and 12 points ahead of Bian Yufei of China in third.

Kim landed in second place after an especially strong performance during the fencing, finishing second behind Bian with 269 points. She finished fourth in the swimming with a time of 2 minutes and 13.61 minutes and fifth in the riding with 63.46 points.

Kim Sun-woo reacts on the podium after winning silver in the women's individual modern pentathlon at the Hangzhou Asian Games in Hangzhou, China on Sunday. Kim's medal was Korea's first of the tournament. [YONHAP]

She was eighth to cross the line in the laser-run with a time of 12 minutes and 31.95 seconds, but her accumulated points lifted her to second place and a silver medal on the overall standings.

Gold medalist Zhang rose to the top of the pack with fifth-place finishes in swimming and fencing and third-place finishes in riding and the laser-run.

Kim is a three-time Asiad medalist, previously winning the team gold in 2014 and an individual bronze in 2018.

Kim was also partly responsible for Korea’s second medal of the Asian Games, with Korea taking home the bronze team medal in the women’s modern pentathlon.

Unlike in the Olympics, where modern pentathlon medals are awarded only to individual athletes, the Asian Games also awards a team medal for the best cumulative score. In this event, the scores of the top three athletes from each country with at least three athletes competing are combined to create a country score.

China topped the table with a combined score of 4,094, followed by Japan in second with 3,705 and Korea with 3,574. Kazakhstan was the only other country eligible for the event, finishing fourth with 3,508.

Kim Sun-woo was joined in the team scoring by Kim Se-hee, who finished 11th in the individual event with a total score of 1,100, and Seong Seung-min, who finished 12th with 1,088 points. Jang Hae-un was the fourth Korean competing in the women’s competition, finishing in 13th place with 1,063 points.

Kim Se-hee, Seong and Jang all saw their scores take a big hit after they failed to pick up any points in riding. All three were hit with EL elimination scores, meaning their horse failed to clear or refused to attempt an obstacle.

As a result of that loss of point, Jang ended up finishing in 13th despite winning the laser-run with a time of 11 minutes and 42.27 seconds, with Kim Se-hee finishing second and Seong fourth.

As of press time, Korea still has two more chances to medal in modern pentathlon. The men’s individual laser-run is set to begin at 5 p.m. on Sunday evening. Korea also has four athletes competing in the event, so could also contend for the team podium.

Korea’s Jun Woong-tae is currently the joint world record holder in men’s modern pentathlon with a score of 1,534 achieved earlier this year at the Pentathlon World Cup in Budapest.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]