'Smile Jumper' battles rain-soaked conditions; gamble on 2.28m falls short

Woo Sang-hyeok of South Korea rallies the crowd during the men's high jump final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Nagoya Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Sunday. [Yonhap]
Woo Sang-hyeok of South Korea rallies the crowd during the men's high jump final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Nagoya Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Sunday. [Yonhap]

Woo Sang-hyeok, known as the "Smile Jumper," claimed bronze at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Sunday, stepping onto the podium for the third consecutive time.

Woo cleared 2.22 meters to finish third in the men's high jump final at Nagoya Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Japan. Having won silver at both the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang and 2022 Hangzhou Games, the 30-year-old from Yongin City Hall extended his streak to three straight Asian Games medals.

Competition proceeded amid heavy rain that left the track thoroughly soaked. Woo skipped the opening heights of 1.95m and 2.05m, entering at 2.10m, which he cleared on his first attempt. He failed his first try at 2.14m but succeeded on the second, then cleared both 2.18m and 2.22m on the first attempt.

With Woo, Fu Chao-hsuan of Taiwan and Sarvesh Anil Kusare of India all having cleared 2.22m, the three athletes moved on to contest the gold medal at 2.25m.

Fu cleared 2.25m on his first attempt, and Kusare followed with a second-attempt success. Woo, however, failed both tries at that height. Knowing that even a successful third attempt at 2.25m would leave him in third place on countback, Woo raised the stakes by calling for the bar to be set at 2.28m for his final attempt.

He could not clear 2.28m, leaving his final mark at 2.22m. Fu and Kusare also failed at 2.28m, meaning Fu — who had cleared 2.25m on his first attempt — took gold, while Kusare, who needed two attempts, claimed silver.

Woo finished 10th at the 2014 Incheon Games as a high school student before earning his first Asian Games podium finish with a 2.28m silver at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games. He added another silver at the 2022 Hangzhou Games with a clearance of 2.33m. Although he fell short of his personal best of 2.36m in Nagoya, the bronze extended his consecutive Asian Games medal run to three editions.

Meanwhile, defending champion and Asian record holder Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar — whose record stands at 2.43m — was listed in the entry but withdrew just before the competition.

Woo Sang-hyeok of South Korea holds the national flag after winning the bronze medal in the men's high jump final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Nagoya Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Sunday. [Yonhap]
Woo Sang-hyeok of South Korea holds the national flag after winning the bronze medal in the men's high jump final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Nagoya Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Sunday. [Yonhap]

yjc@heraldcorp.com