Choi Ji-un prepares to compete in the boys' dinghy sailing event at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Gamagori Kaiyo Yacht Harbor in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Friday.
Choi Ji-un prepares to compete in the boys' dinghy sailing event at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at Gamagori Kaiyo Yacht Harbor in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Friday.

Choi Ji-un, a 15-year-old member of South Korea's national sailing team, claimed a gold medal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Saturday.

Choi won the boys' dinghy event at Gamagori Kaiyo Yacht Harbor in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, finishing with 25 points after 12 races to take first place — a remarkable turnaround after sitting in fourth place heading into the final stages of competition.

The gold is South Korea's first in an Asian Games youth sailing event in 12 years, since Park Seong-bin won the under-16 Optimist class at the 2014 Incheon Games.


betterj@heraldcorp.com