Rivalry to add heat to Asiad
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Gymnast Son Yeon-jae aims to win her first gold medal at the Incheon Asian Games in front of a home crowd. / Yonhap
By Yoon Sung-won
Heated rivalry will be a highlight at the upcoming Incheon Asian Games, which surely intrigues sports fans.
Swimmer Park Tae-hwan and gymnasts Yang Hak-seon and Son Yeon-jae will take on their Asian rivals on home soil during the Asiad, which starts on Sept. 19.
Park, the nation’s star swimmer, will compete against China’s Sun Yang from Sept. 21 to 26.
The two have performed well in recent international competitions, which Western swimmers have dominated. They are expected to face each other in the 200m freestyle on Sept. 21 and the 400m freestyle on Sept. 23.
Their previous clashes show that Park has strength in short-distance sprints such as 100m and 200m races. He is Asia’s leading 200m swimmer. On the other hand, Sun has the upper hand in long-distance races, holding the 1500 world record.
The mid-distance 400m race is expected to be the closest race because the two swimmers have ping-ponged golds at previous Olympics and Asiads.
Park is in peak form after winning the 400m freestyle final at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships last month, setting this year’s world best time. Sun did not participate.
Rhythm gymnast Son should also overcome the Chinese to win her first Asiad gold medal.
Rhythm gymnast Deng Senyue, 22, is regarded as Son’s strongest rival.
They will meet if they advance from group stages where they face challengers from Japan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Deng beat Son at the world championships in Ukraine in August last year. But an ankle injury left her far behind the South Korean at the Dundee World Cup in Sofia, Bulgaria, last month.
Expectation that Son will win gold is high, as she won three bronze medals in the August event, and has won at least one medal in the last 10 world cup series. Despite the world cup name, there are actually several tournaments held in several cities every year.
Adding an Asiad gold to her collection will be a significant achievement not only for her but also for her country, which has long been an underdog in international competitions.
Another star gymnast, Yang Hak-seon, who won multiple golds at the London Olympics and previous Asiads, will be up against North Korean gymnast Ri Se-gwang. Ri won a gold medal at the 2006 Asiad in Doha, Qatar.
Yang will participate in floor, and ring events as well as his specialty vault, starting from Sept. 21.
Yang and his North Korean rival are expected to demonstrate their unique vault techniques, which are named after them.