S. Korea's Kim Young-chan wins bronze in Gran Turismo 7, 1st esports medal at 2026 Asian Games
South Korean gamer and racer Kim Young-chan plays Gran Turismo 7 during the final at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, Wednesday. Yonhap
TOKONAME, Japan — South Korean gamer and racer Kim Young-chan won the bronze medal in Gran Turismo 7, the auto racing game contest, at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Wednesday, bringing home South Korea's first esports medal at this year's competition.
Kim finished third in the final of the Gran Turismo 7 esports event at Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, some 35 kilometers south of the main host city of Nagoya, Japan.
Taj Izrin Aiman Taj Madira of Malaysia won the gold, and Naif Abdulhakim S Alfaleh of Saudi Arabia grabbed the silver.
Kim's bronze is South Korea's first medal in esports, which features 11 gaming events, including Gran Turismo 7 and League of Legends (LoL), at this year's Asian Games.
In the Gran Turismo 7 final, eight players raced in three rounds on different circuits using different cars.
Kim took pole position for the first race after finishing first in the semifinals but finished sixth after crashing into a wall on the third lap.
In the second race, Kim started sixth but moved up to third on the sixth lap and eventually took the checkered flag.
Right after the third race started, Kim dropped to third and could not close the gap with leader Taj Madira.