Woo Sang-hyeok clinches bronze at Athletics Indoor Championships

Korea's Woo Sang-hyeok competes in the men's high jump final at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Korea’s Woo Sang-hyeok took bronze in the high jump at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland on Sunday, clearing 2.28 meters to win a spot on the podium, though he fell short of defending his title.

Woo, 27, won gold at the 2022 indoor championships, becoming the first-ever Korean to win the event at the biennial tournament with a mark of 2.34 meters.

His personal best is 2.36 meters, the national record in Korea.

New Zealand’s Hamish Kerr, 27, took home the men’s high jump title this year, clearing 2.36 meters to claim gold and set a new New Zealand record. The United States’ Shelby McEwen, also 27, took silver, finishing at 2.28 meters but clearing the bar in fewer attempts than Woo.

Woo, currently ranked No. 4 in men’s high jump according to World Athletics, was the highest-ranked among the top three finishers in Glasgow. The World No. 1, JuVaughn Harrison of the United States, was absent from the tournament entry list, as were No. 2 Mutaz Barshim of Qatar and No. 3 Gianmarco Tamberi — who famously shared a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Woo is set to compete at his third Olympics this summer in Paris where he’ll vie for his first Olympic medal. He finished fourth in Tokyo, clearing 2.35 meters — a new national record but just short of the 2.37 meters needed for a spot on the podium.

Woo’s fourth-place finish eluded him exemption from mandatory military service, which he was serving while competing at the Olympics. He also set a new national record — which, at this point, is synonymous to Woo’s personal best — by clearing 2.36 meters at a 2022 indoor event in the Czech Republic and won a silver medal at the 2022 World Athletics Champions before the end of his service the following year.

He had a banner season in 2023, becoming the first-ever Korean to win a Diamond League Final title in any discipline after clearing 2.35 meters, his outdoor personal best. It was a huge moment for Woo and for Korea, far from prolific in Track & Field, as only the top six athletes in each discipline can enter the annual tournament.

Woo followed his Diamond League victory with a silver medal at last year’s Asian Games, coming second to Barshim.

Woo was the only Korean athlete to win a medal at the Glasgow Indoor Championships, claiming his first international title of the year.

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