Yun Ji-hwan of South Korea poses with his bronze medal after finishing third in the men's 50-meter backstroke final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on Monday. [Yonhap]
Yun Ji-hwan of South Korea poses with his bronze medal after finishing third in the men's 50-meter backstroke final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on Monday. [Yonhap]

South Korea swept the bronze medals in the men's and women's 50-meter backstroke at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Monday, with Yun Ji-hwan and Kim Seung-won each finishing third to demonstrate the country's competitiveness in the event.

Yun, competing for Gangwon Province, touched the pad in 24.54 seconds in the men's final at Tokyo Aquatics Centre to claim third place.

Starting from lane five, Yun entered the water with a reaction time of 0.56 seconds and held on through a tight battle for the podium, edging out fourth-place finisher Stefan Goncharov of Bahrain — who clocked 24.92 — by 0.38 seconds.

China swept gold and silver. Xu Jiayu, the Asian record holder, set a new Games record of 24.04 seconds to take gold, shaving 0.24 seconds off the previous mark of 24.28 set by Japan's Junya Koga at the 2014 Incheon Games. Wang Zicheng of China took silver in 24.49.

Kim Seung-won of South Korea celebrates on the podium after winning bronze in the women's 50-meter backstroke final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on Monday. [Yonhap]
Kim Seung-won of South Korea celebrates on the podium after winning bronze in the women's 50-meter backstroke final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on Monday. [Yonhap]

In the women's 50-meter backstroke final, Kim Seung-won added another bronze to South Korea's tally.

Kim, a student at Gyeonggi Sports High School, touched in 27.72 seconds to finish third. Starting from lane five with a reaction time of 0.56 seconds, she stayed close to the leaders throughout and secured her place on the podium.

Wan Letian of China took gold in 27.47, while compatriot Wang Xue'er claimed silver in 27.66.

Lee Eun-ji, competing for the Gangwon Province Sports Council, finished seventh in 28.53.


chami@heraldcorp.com