Kim Woo-min, Hwang Sun-woo, Yang Jae-hoon and Lee Ho-joon of South Korea react to their sixth place finish in the men’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay final at the Paris Olympics at the Paris La Défense Arena in Nanterre, France, on July 30. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul
South Korea finished sixth in its first-ever Olympic swimming relay final on Tuesday, unable to close an early deficit.
The team of Yang Jae-hoon, Lee Ho-joon, Kim Woo-min and Hwang Sun-woo clocked 7:07.26 in the men’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay final at Paris La Défense Arena in Nanterre, just west of the French capital.
It was South Korea’s first appearance in an Olympic swimming relay final, and all four swimmers were hoping to make even more history by reaching the podium.
However, South Korea finished last among the nine finalists after Yang’s time of 1:49.84. Hwang, as the leader, led the team out of the cave in the final stretch for a more honorable finish.
The same four swimmers set a national record and an Asian record of 7:01.73 in winning gold at last year’s Asian Games, but were nearly six seconds off the mark less than a year later.
Lee finished the second leg in a solid but unspectacular 1:46.45, and South Korea remained in ninth place. Kim, Saturday’s 400m freestyle bronze medallist, had the team’s best time at 1:44.98, but that could only move South Korea up one spot to eighth.
South Korea’s Hwang Sun-woo competes in the men’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay final at the Paris Olympics at the Paris La Défense Arena in Nanterre, France, on July 30. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul
South Korea needed a miracle to secure a medal at this stage. Hwang gave it his best shot, but his time of 1:45.99 wasn’t enough to secure a podium finish.
Great Britain won gold in 6:59.43, followed by the United States in 7:00.78. Australia took bronze in 7:01.98, 0.25 times slower than the South Korean national record.
Hwang did not compete in the morning heats because he had competed in the 100m freestyle heats about two hours earlier. He advanced to the 100m freestyle semifinals but withdrew after South Korea earned a spot in the relay final. The 100m freestyle semifinals and relay final were less than two hours apart, and Hwang chose to focus on the team event.
The relay team arrived with high expectations, with the same group of four swimmers having improved their own national record several times over the past year.
The relay result only added to Hwang’s woes, which has been a disappointing Olympics for the 21-year-old. The 2024 world champion in the 200m freestyle failed to even qualify for the semifinals of that race on Sunday, and will most likely leave France without a medal for his second Olympics.
“Even though the result is not what we wanted, it is not the end for us. We still have many more major competitions to come,” Hwang said. “We were full of confidence before the race. We will take this opportunity to look in the mirror, regroup and prepare for future events.”
Kim said it was an honor to compete in the finals with this group.
“We have spent the last three years preparing for this event. Even though it is over for us, we still have a long way to go,” he said. “We will use this disappointment as fuel and try to go even higher next time.” (Yonhap)
