Coach reveals secret behind Hwang Seo-hyeon's Asian Games gold

NAGOYA — Incheon Physical Education High School coach Jin Gyu-tae, who trains Hwang Seo-hyeon, a 17-year-old gymnast, smiled as he reflected on his student's gold medal in an interview with Hankook Ilbo on Sunday, saying it was likely the result of “her genuine love for the balance beam since childhood.”

Jin, who watched Hwang's “golden performance” at the 2026 Asian Games in Japan offered a measured assessment, acknowledging that “luck also played a part.” Still, he expressed hope that she could contend for an Olympic medal in two years if she avoided injuries and improved her jumps.

Hwang topped the women's balance beam final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Friday at Rainbow Hall in Nagoya, scoring 14.700 points — 6.600 in difficulty and 8.100 in execution.

She became the first Korean gymnast to win an Asian Games gold medal on the balance beam in 40 years, since Seo Seon-aeng at the 1986 Seoul Asian Games. Her victory followed Yeo Seo-jeong's gold in the women's vault the previous day, giving Korea another gold medal in artistic gymnastics. Her confident performance, delivered despite her petite frame, drew gasps from the stands.

The gold medal came as a surprise even to Jin. “Seo-hyeon qualified in fifth place, so I honestly didn't expect her to win gold,” he said. “She performed at 100 percent of her ability, and it also helped that Qiu Qiyuan of China, who had ranked first in the preliminaries, faltered a little.”

But it was ultimately Hwang's own skill that turned the opportunity into a victory. Jin said she “deserved the gold” because she flawlessly executed a “360-degree turn after an aerial somersault,” a move that, according to him, only Hwang performs in Korea.

“After finishing her routine, she stared intently at the scoreboard, repeating, ‘Please, please,’” he said. “I could tell how desperately she wanted it.”

Standing 133.6 centimeters tall, Hwang was noticeably smaller than her peers from elementary school. But her passion for the balance beam and her confidence were second to none.

“She started gymnastics early and stood out from elementary school,” Jin recalled. “She was never the kind of child to feel intimidated because of her small stature.”

He added, “Her mother and younger sister aren't short, but Seo-hyeon seems to have maintained her petite build by devoting herself to gymnastics from a young age.”

Off the competition floor, Hwang is an ordinary teenage girl who expresses her emotions openly. Her personality was on full display when she rushed toward the podium to celebrate after securing the gold medal.

“I was relieved that national team coach Min Hwa-young quickly pulled her back down,” Jin said with a laugh.

An anecdote about her victory gift also brought a smile. Jin said the school principal had asked Hwang what she wanted as a reward, only to receive an unexpected request.

“She asked, ‘Could you postpone our school trip to Jeju Island, scheduled for Nov. 3 to 6?’” Jin said. “It put us in a difficult position.”

He explained that Hwang was genuinely disappointed about missing the trip because the national team selection trials were scheduled to begin Nov. 4. “Rescheduling the trip would be difficult, but we're considering sending the gymnastics students separately,” he added.

Jin hopes his student's ambitions will extend beyond the Asian Games to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Her goal is to win Korea's first-ever Olympic medal in the women's balance beam event.

“It's not an impossible goal if she gains more international experience and improves her jump height and artistic expression,” he said.

Still, her health comes before any medal. Jin stressed that she would need to adapt to changes in her body as she grows.

“I've seen several athletes have to end their careers prematurely because of injuries,” he said. “The most important thing is to stay injury-free.”

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.