Korea ends Asian Para Games with 30 gold, 33 silver and 40 bronze medals

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Published: 30 Oct. 2023, 16:04

Korea ends Asian Para Games with 30 gold, 33 silver and 40 bronze medals

Kim Gun-hae, left, and Shin Seung-won pose with their medals after taking bronze in table tennis mixed doubles XD17-20 at the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Korea placed fourth overall on the medal table at the Asian Para Games, which wrapped up Saturday in Hangzhou, China. The national team won a total of 103 medals — 30 gold, 33 silver and 40 bronze.

Sprinter Jeon Min-jae wins Korea's first medal at Asian Para Games

Table tennis was Korea’s most successful Para Games sport in Hangzhou. Athletes took home a total of 28 medals across the sport’s doubles and singles categories, winning nine golds, five silvers and 14 bronzes.

Korea's Jang Young-jin, left, and Joo Young-dae pose after winning the final of the MD 4 mixed doubles table tennis at the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou China on Friday. [NEWS1]

Korean sprinter Jeon Min-jae won the country’s first medal, taking silver in the women’s athletics 200-meter T36 contest last week. Days later, she returned to the track to take another silver in the women’s athletics 100-meter T36 race.

Athletes competing in the 30s sport classes have impairments that affect muscle coordination which are often associated with cerebral palsy or traumatic brain injury. Jeon was diagnosed with encephalitis at age five, which resulted in cerebral palsy.

Athletes of classes 35 to 38 like Jeon have better control of their torso and legs and compete in a standing position, whereas athletes in classes 31 to 34 compete using wheelchairs.

Cyclist Kim Jung-been took Korea’s first gold medal of the Games, according to reporters on the ground, winning the men’s Class B 4,000-meter individual pursuit and setting a new Games record in the qualifying heat with a time of 4 minutes and 32.549 seconds.

Korea's Kim Jung-been, left, competes with pilot Yang Joong-hun in men's cycling B at the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China. [대한장애인체육회]

Athletes of the B class are visually impaired and compete with a non-visually impaired pilot and both pedal using a tandem bike. Jung, 32, also won gold in the men’s B road race and time trial.

Over in team sports, the Korean men's wheelchair basketball team took silver in the final against Japan, losing narrowly 47-45.

Korea's Cho Seung-hyun passes the ball during the men's wheelchair basketball gold medal match against Japan at the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China on Friday. [XINHUA]

Hangzhou saw a mix of sun, clouds and rain during the week-long Games. Temperatures stayed around the low 20s (high 60s and low 70s, in Fahrenheit) throughout.

China topped the medal table, with 521 total medals, 214 of them gold. Iran came in second, with 131 total medals, 44 of them gold, and Japan finished third, taking home 150 total medals but just 42 gold.

BY MARY YANG [mary.yang@joongang.co.kr]