105th KOREAN NATIONAL SPORTS FESTIVAL
- Saturday, October 12th – Thursday, October 17th
- Changwon Indoor Swimming Pool
- LCM (50m)
- Live Results Pending
- Livestream
The 105th Korean National Sports Festival is underway from Changwon Indoor Swimming Pool with 21-year-old Olympian Hwang Sunwoo among the field.
Hwang put up a solid effort of 1:45.03 to top the men’s 200m free contest, beating his competitors by over a second. The next-closest swimmer was Lee Hongjun who clocked 1:46.60.
Hwang’s splits included 50.94/54.09 en route to gold, with his 1:45.03 easily beating the 1:45.92 he registered at this year’s Olympic Games, a semi-final time which rendered him the 9th place finisher. His lifetime best remains at the national record of 1:44.40 logged at the 2023 Asian Games.
After today’s race, Hwang stated, “I was taken aback because I did not expect a time like this. It is difficult to record in the early 1 minute 45 seconds range in domestic competitions, so I achieved a good time. It was a meaningful race.” (Naver.com)
He continued, “I expected a time in the late 1 minute 45 seconds to early 46 seconds because the preparation period was short,” adding, “It’s comforting and makes me think deeply at the same time.
“I feel relieved that I’m not in a slump, but I think there will be changes in my approach and training methods going forward.” (Naver.com)
Additional Notes
- 18-year-old Yoon Ji-hwan broke the Korean national record in the men’s 50m back twice on day 4. Yoon first clocked a time of 24.85 in the morning heats, a time which already sliced .02 off his own previous Korean standard of 24.87. Then the finals saw him grab the gold in 24.67.
- The women’s 200m breast saw Moon Su-a, just 16 years of age, score a new Korean national record en route to victory. Moon stopped the clock at 2:23.87, erasing the 2:24.20 Jung Seul-ki put on the books in 2009. The teen told Asian media post-race, “I set a goal of setting a new Korean record for the women’s 200m breaststroke three years ago and I’m even happier that I set a record at this National Sports Festival.” (Naver.com)
- 18-year-old Lee Eun-ji turned in a new national record in the women’s 200m back. She earned a time of 2:08.81, overtaking the former standard of 2:09.49 Im Da-sol hit in 2019. Lee is already the 100m back national record holder, courtesy of the 1:00.03 she produced first at the 2021 Korean Olympic Trials and again at the 2023 Asian Games.
More like post-Tokyo Olympics Chalmers vibe. Makes me wonder what will he go at the Incheon stop in the coming weeks…
PS: swimmers really need to learn how to properly taper so he or she doesn’t peak after a big meet
Matthew temple vibes
Ah hell nah where was this at the Olympics 💀 bro thinks he’s Matthew temple
I’m a Popovici supporter, but Hwang deserved to medal or at least make the final at the Olympics based on the quad he had. Hoping for some (more) good results for him in the next few years!
He has the talent, speed, and endurance to go 1:43 – he just needs to find a way to execute when it matters.
I wonder if he’s thought of training outside of Korea with European/American coaches? Seems like Korea’s taper during the Olympics really missed its mark.
He doesn’t need to leave Korea to hit his taper next time.
He does train outside of South Korea. They have had training camps with Ian Pope and Richard Scarce in Australia. Is Lee Hongjun just a misromanization of Lee Hojoon, or did they find another new 200 freestyler?
An incredible talent who must understand how to properly prepare for the big event. I agree with his statement that this performance makes him think deeply and that he needs to change something in his training methods. Still young so it is not impossible to take the big step that everyone expects from him