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| Hwang Sun-woo |
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| Hwang Sun-woo |
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"I've tapped a lot, but I'm really touched by the 43rd second mark."
Hwang Sun-woo (22, Gangwon Provincial Government) expressed his excitement after setting an Asian record in the men's 200m freestyle in his main event at the Busan National Sports Festival.
At the 106th National Sports Festival held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 20th, Hwang Sun-woo hit a touchpad with a time of 1:43.92 and an overwhelming first place in the men's 200m freestyle final. He beat runner-up Lee Ho-joon (1:47.72) for nearly four seconds, becoming the first Asian player to hit the 1:43 range with four consecutive wins in this event. He broke the Korean record of 1:44:40 set at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games by 0.48 seconds in more than two years, and finally surpassed the Asian record (1:44:39) set by Chinese Sun Yang at the 2017 Budapest World Championships in eight years.
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| Hwang Sun-woo answering the audience |
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| Happy Hwang Sun-woo |
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Hwang Seon-woo ran the first 50m section with a time of 23.96 seconds and the 50-100m section with a time of 26.31 seconds, then passed the 100-150m section with a time of 26.81 seconds, and finished the last 50m with a time of 26.84. He recorded 23 seconds in the first 50m, and showed his strength to run the rest of the section in 26 seconds. Hwang Sun-woo, who checked the record on the electronic display after taking the touchpad, roared hot amid cheers from fans.
Hwang Sun-woo is a world-class racer in this event who won three consecutive podiums in Budapest (silver medal), Fukuoka (bronze medal) in 2023, and Doha World Championships (gold medal) in 2024, but he failed to make it to the final at the Paris Olympics last year due to poor condition, and he experienced the ordeal of missing four consecutive medals at 1:44:72 and fourth place at this year's Singapore World Championships. David Popovich (Romania), a gold medalist in this event at the Paris Olympics, won in 1:43.53; Luke Hobson (USA), a bronze medalist in this event at the Paris Olympics, won the silver medal with 1:43.84; and Tatsuya Murasa, an 18-year-old Japanese, won the bronze medal with 1:44:54. Hwang Sun-woo was behind Murasa by 0.18 seconds.
Hwang Sun-woo's struggle, who secretly consulted after missing medals in major competitions, finally paid off brilliantly at the Busan National Sports Festival. "I'm really happy to break the 43-second barrier that I've been longing for since the Tokyo Olympics," Hwang said through his agency All That Sports. There were many difficult moments in preparation, but I feel like all the hard work is rewarded. "After a short break after the World Championship, I started training again, and I was able to show everything I had prepared in the race." gave an overwhelming impression. "I've tapped so many times in the 1 minute 43 second range, and I'm really touched. I think this record will be a big stepping stone in my swimming life"I think that records can only be recorded several times, not once." I'm not satisfied with the current results and I'll prepare step by step so that I can maintain the 43-second range" expressed his determination.
Hwang Sun-woo, who won two gold medals in the 800-meter relay on Wednesday and the 200-meter freestyle on Tuesday, will compete in the 200-meter individual medley, 400-meter relay, and 400-meter medley relay for the second consecutive time since last year.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
