South Korea is jokingly said to be ‘at war’ in the Paris Olympics. There’s a lighthearted joke that South Korean athletes can’t win gold medals without ‘weapons.’ These ‘weapons’ refer to bows, guns, and swords (fencing).
On July. 3 (local time), Yang Ji-in won the gold medal in the women’s 25m pistol shooting final after a shoot-off at the Châteauroux Shooting Centre in France. This was Korea’s 8th gold medal of the competition and the 3rd in shooting. Later, Lim Si-hyeon won the 9th gold medal in the women’s individual archery event, kicking off the “Golden Weekend.”
As of the 8th day of the competition, S. Korea has steadily collected gold medals in shooting, archery, and fencing. They have won 4 in archery, 3 in shooting, and 2 in fencing.
Out of a total of 21 medals of the country, 13 have been won with bows, guns, and swords, making up nearly two-thirds of the total. The rest came from judo (2 silver, 3 bronze), badminton (1 silver), swimming (1 bronze), and table tennis (1 bronze).
The first gold medal for Korea was won with a “sword.”
On July. 27, Oh Sang-uk won the men’s individual sabre fencing event, achieving a “Grand Slam” (winning at the World Championships, Asian Games, Asian Championships, and Olympics).
The next day saw victories with a “gun” and a “bow.” On July. 28, Oh Ye-jin won an unexpected gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol, and the women’s archery team, consisting of Lim Si-hyeon, Jeon Hun-young, and Nam Su-hyun, achieved their 10th consecutive win in the team event.
On July. 30, Ban Hyo-jin became the youngest gold medalist in Korea’s Summer Olympic history by winning the women’s 10m air rifle shooting event.
That same day, Kim Woo-jin, Lee Woo-seok, and Kim Je-deok led the men’s archery team to their 3rd consecutive team event win.
The following day, July. 31, Oh Sang-uk, Gu Bon-gil, Park Sang-won, and Do Gyeong-dong defeated Hungary in the men’s team sabre fencing final, securing Korea’s 3rd consecutive Olympic victory in this event.
The 7th gold medal also came from archery. On Aug. 2, Kim Woo-jin and Lim Si-hyeon won the mixed team event, each becoming double gold medalists.
The next day, Yang Ji-in secured Korea’s 8th gold medal in the women’s 25m pistol shooting final. On the same day, Lim Si-hyeon claimed 1st place in the women’s individual archery event, earning Korea’s 9th gold medal of the Olympics and achieving her third gold in archery.
