South Korea's starting pitcher Kwak Bin delivers during a game. [Yonhap]
South Korea's starting pitcher Kwak Bin delivers during a game. [Yonhap]

South Korea's baseball and women's handball teams are both set to face Japan in gold-medal matches Sunday at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

The baseball team, led by Manager Ryu Ji-hyun, plays in the final at 6:30 p.m. at Toyohashi Municipal Baseball Stadium in Aichi Prefecture. A victory would give South Korea five consecutive Asian Games titles, a streak stretching back to the 2010 Guangzhou Games.

Earlier, South Korea fell to Japan 0-5 in the opening super round game Friday at the same venue — the first time South Korea had lost to Japan in Asian Games baseball since the 2006 Doha Games, 20 years ago. It was also the first time South Korea had been shut out against Japan since baseball became an official event at the 1994 Hiroshima Games.

South Korea, fielding a roster of KBO League first-division players, was held hitless by a Japanese team made up entirely of amateur players from the corporate baseball circuit.

South Korea advanced to the final with a 2-1 record in the super round, while Japan topped the group with three straight wins.

South Korea's women's handball player Woo Bit-na takes a shot during a match. [Yonhap]
South Korea's women's handball player Woo Bit-na takes a shot during a match. [Yonhap]

The women's handball team, coached by Lee Gye-cheong, faces Japan at 6 p.m. the same day at Inazawa Entrio in Aichi Prefecture in the sixth and final round-robin match. With seven teams each playing one another once, the match is in effect the gold-medal final.

South Korea and Japan are both unbeaten through five games, each with 10 points. South Korea leads on goal difference, with a differential of plus-134 against Japan's plus-101. The Koreans beat Hong Kong 48-16, Kazakhstan 42-18, Uzbekistan 43-13 and China 37-17, then routed Vietnam 46-18 on Saturday.

Three years ago at the Hangzhou Games, South Korea lost the final to Japan 19-29, falling short by 10 goals and settling for silver. Both teams favor fast transitions, so defense is expected to be the deciding factor.


dbsdn1110@heraldcorp.com