Swimmers lament decision not to award medals to relay heat participants
Summary
South Korean swimmer Kim Min-seop said in Tokyo that he will not receive physical medals for relay heats despite helping South Korea win silver in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay and bronze in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay. The Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games organizers instead decided to give heat-only swimmers certificates. The decision drew criticism from swimmers as a break from long-standing swimming tradition and a cost-saving move.
Key Facts
- Kim Min-seop won bronze in the men’s 200-meter butterfly and said it was his first physical medal of the competition.
- He had swum only in the heats of the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay and the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay, where South Korea won silver and bronze.
- A Korea Swimming Federation official confirmed that the organizers decided not to give medals to swimmers who only competed in relay heats.
- The organizers said in a note that preliminary heats would not get medals and that digital certificates would be sent to team leaders after the competition.
- An Se-hyeon said it was unfair that only final swimmers received medals even though relay teams shared the same goal.
Kim Seung-won, Park Si-eun, An Se-hyeon and Hur Yeon-kyung of South Korea, from left to right, pose on the podium after winning bronze in the women's 4x100-meter medley relay swimming event at the Asian Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre in Tokyo, Sept. 25. Yonhap
TOKYO — By taking bronze in the men's 200-meter butterfly at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Friday, South Korean swimmer Kim Min-seop won his third medal of the competition — but his first physical medal.
While discussing his performance with the media, Kim said he had learned that he would not receive medals for participating in the heats for the men's 4x100m freestyle relay and the men's 4x200m freestyle relay. South Korea won silver and bronze in those races, respectively. Kim, who only took part in the heats for both, will still go into the record books as a medalist for both events but will not have physical medals as proof.
"I was a little bummed out that I was not going to receive medals for those relays," Kim said. "At least I got this medal here today, and I can show it to my parents."
An official with the Korea Swimming Federation (KSF) confirmed that the organizers of the Asiad had decided not to present medals to those who only compete in the heats for relays and to give them certificates instead. It represents a departure from a long-held tradition in international swimming and apparently part of the organizers' effort to save costs at an event already criticized for penny-pinching ways.
"No medals will be awarded for the preliminary heats. Certificates will be provided digitally and sent to each team leader after the competition," a note provided to swimmers read. "Therefore, no additional physical medals or certificates will be distributed at the venue."
Teams often rest their top relay swimmers for the finals held in the evening and rely on preliminary swimmers to get through the morning heat sessions.
An Se-hyeon, who won bronze in the women's 4x100m medley relay Friday but only swam in the final, said it was a shame that preliminary swimmers were not being recognized.
"We were able to win such a precious bronze medal here tonight thanks to my teammates who competed in the heats," the 30-year-old An said. "I have never seen anything like this before. We have all worked hard for the same goal, and having only the final swimmers get medals is not fair."
The organizing committee had not responded to Yonhap News Agency's request for comment on the matter as of this writing.
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