Korean pentathletes driven to win Korea's 1st gold at 2026 Asian Games
Korean modern pentathletes pose for a group photo during a press conference at Jincheon National Training Center, North Chungcheong Province, Thursday. Yonhap
JINCHEON — Korean modern pentathletes said Thursday they will try to win the country's very first gold medal of this year's Asian Games in Japan.
All four gold medals in the sport — in the men's and women's individual and team events — will be awarded Sept. 20, the first day of the medal race at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, with the preliminary action set to commence Sept. 16, three days before the opening ceremony.
Korea will send four male and four female athletes: Jun Woong-tae, Seo Chang-wan, Lee Jong-hyun and Kim Young-ha for men; and Seong Seung-min, Shin Sumin, Jang Ha-eun and Kim Yu-ri for women.
Jun, the 2021 Olympic bronze medalist, won both the individual and team titles at the previous Asian Games in 2023.
"My teammates all have such determined looks in their eyes. I can see that they are ready to show everything they have at this competition," said Jun, the team's captain, during a joint national team press conference at the Jincheon National Training Center in Jincheon, 85 kilometers south of Seoul. "We will try to come home with all four gold medals from the men's and women's events."
Modern pentathlon underwent a significant change after the 2024 Olympics, with equestrian show jumping being replaced by obstacle racing, a la "Ninja Warrior."
Head coach Kim Sung-jin said his athletes have been working with a Filipino instructor to improve their obstacle skills.
"When the change was first made, our focus was simply on clearing obstacles," Kim said. "Since then, our athletes have learned how to maintain their rhythm and flow throughout the course and their performances have improved a great deal."
Seo said he found the obstacle portion of the competition "awkward and difficult at first," but he has since learned how to enjoy it. The 29-year-old won the individual title at the second leg of the World Cup season in Bulgaria in May.
"At my Asian Games debut in 2023, I was constantly worried about how I would do, and I never competed to the best of my abilities," Seo said. "This time, I want to perform at my 100 percent and win a gold medal."
Seong, the 2024 Olympic bronze medalist, has won the most international medals since the introduction of obstacle racing, including the Asian championships title and the World Cup final silver in 2025.
"In equestrian, it was just me and the horse. In obstacle racing, two athletes go head-to-head. It should be more fun for people watching," Seong said. "Chinese athletes have been really good in the obstacle event, and Japanese athletes have also improved there. So we have to watch out for them."
Jun said Korea, China and Japan will likely battle for medals again after finishing 1-2-3 in the men's team event at the 2023 Asian Games.
"China has a deep team and has brought in some good young athletes," Jun said. "We will try to be back on top of the podium."
The Korean team will compete at the world championships in China from Aug. 24 to 30 as a prelude to the Asian Games and then travel to Nagoya on Sept. 13.