Lee Bo-mi competes in a match. [AP]
Lee Bo-mi competes in a match. [AP]

Lee Bo-mi claimed a bronze medal in mixed martial arts at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, where the sport made its debut as an official event.

Lee lost 0-3 to Diana Pogosian of Bahrain in the semifinals of the women's modern MMA 54-kilogram category Monday at the Inabe Sports Center in Nagoya, Japan. She had advanced to the semifinals by defeating Lotipung of Vietnam 2-1 in the quarterfinals Sunday, but fell short of a spot in the gold-medal match and settled for bronze.

MMA was introduced as an official Asian Games discipline for the first time at this edition. The sport is divided into two categories based on attire: "traditional MMA," in which athletes wear sleeveless gis, and "modern MMA," in which competitors wear rash guards as in standard MMA bouts. As in boxing, no separate bronze-medal match is held — both semifinal losers receive bronze medals.

South Korea also fielded Choi Eun-seok in the men's modern 71-kilogram class and Yoon Tae-young in the men's traditional 77-kilogram class, but both were eliminated in the quarterfinals. As a result, the South Korean MMA team — competing at the Asian Games for the first time — finished the tournament with Lee's single bronze medal.


yjc@heraldcorp.com