Hwang Sunwoo(Left) and Kim Woo-min are rising stars of Korean swimming.

Korean Men's Swimming Enters Its Golden Era

By Byung Kee Park

Following the retirement of Olympic gold medalist Park Tae-hwan, concerns loomed over the future of Korean swimming, with many fearing a period of decline. Contrary to these apprehensions, the nation is currently experiencing its most successful era in the sport.

Hwang Sunwoo, 20 ^{years old}, and Kim Woo-min, 22 ^{years old}, lead the charge. Hwang, tipped to be the torchbearer of Korean swimming post-Park Tae-hwan, clinched gold at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. He completed the men's 200m freestyle in 1 minute and 44.40 seconds, ranking second in the world this year. The leading record is 1 minute and 44.30 seconds, set by Matthew Richards of Great Britain at the World Championships in Fukushima. Hwang's time also places him joint 21st on the all-time list. The all-time best is 1 minute and 42 seconds, set by Germany's Paul Biedermann in 2009. Hwang is a mere 0.01 seconds behind the Asian record set by China's Sun Yang. With his current trajectory, breaking into the 1 minute and 43 seconds bracket seems imminent, elevating him to the 13th position historically.

Two years Hwang's senior, Kim Woo-min secured a gold in the men's 800m freestyle at the Asian Games, posting a time of 7 minutes and 46.03 seconds. This surpassed the previous Games record, set by China's Sun Yang in 2018, by over two seconds. There are growing anticipations that Kim, with continued progress, could surpass Sun Yang's Asian record of 7 minutes and 39.96 seconds. Kim is also competing in the 400m freestyle, his signature event, where he has a personal best of 3 minutes and 43.92 seconds, ranking him 9th globally this year.

Korea's Ji Yuchan (21, 50m freestyle, 21.72 seconds) and Baek Incheol (23, 50m butterfly, 23.39 seconds) secured golds at the Asian Games. While they haven't yet breached the global top 100 in their respective events, both show promising growth, signaling potential top-tier rankings on the worldwide stage in the near future. Baek expressed disappointment at not breaking into the 22-second bracket, a feat that would position him within the top 10 globally this year.

Other notable Korean swimmers include Yang Jaehoon, 25, and Lee Hojoon, 22, who have made significant strides. Korea, which previously struggled to make finals on the world stage, is now showcasing tremendous growth, positioning itself as a contender for medals at the Olympic level.

In the men's 800m relay, the Korean team set a new Asian record at the Asian Games with 7 minutes and 1.73 seconds, surpassing a 14-year-old record previously held by Japan. They also secured silver in the men's 400m relay with Ji Yuchan, Lee Hojoon, Kim Jihoon (23), and Hwang Sunwoo clocking 3 minutes and 12.96 seconds. 

Korea has bagged 17 medals at the current Asian Games: 5 gold, 4 silver, and 8 bronze. This has set a new national record for most medals at a single Asian Games in swimming, surpassing the previous best of 16.