Lee Woo-seok (Kolon) won his dream gold medal after three Olympics.
The South Korean men's archery team, consisting of Kim Woo-jin (Cheongju City Hall), Lee Woo-seok and Kim Je-deok (Yecheon County Office), won the men's team final at the 2024 Paris Olympics against France by 5-1 (57-57, 59-58, 59-56) on the 30th (Korea time). After Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2020, Korea succeeded in 'Gold Hunt' for the third consecutive time.
사진=Yonhap News
사진=Yonhap News
At the center of the victory was Lee Woo-seok's performance of 'No. 1 runner'. Lee Woo-seok has done his part as the No. 1 runner of this series. He completed a 'Perfect Game' against France, scoring 10 points in all six shots. French fans were also fascinated by his brilliant play.
It is a very special gold medal for Lee Woo-suk. He was selected as the leading member of archery in the Republic of Korea from a young age. He won five gold medals at the 2013 National Sports Festival when he was a student at Incheon Seonin High School. At the 2014 Youth Olympics held in Nanjing, China, he set a new world record under the age of 17.
Fate ran strangely. After rising to the adult level, Lee Woo-suk failed to overcome the last shot in front of the big stage. In the 2016 Rio Olympics national team selection, he finished fourth. I missed the Olympic ticket to the top three in front of my eyes. Even at the Tokyo Olympics, he was not on the final list. He also failed to reach the top at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, when he joined the first-team national team. He won silver medals in both individual and team events at the time when he joined the Korean Armed Forces as a private. If he won the gold medal at that time, he could have received a special military service exemption. But even that wasn't up to Lee Woo-suk.
It shook, but it didn't collapse. Lee Woo-seok stood in front of the diagonal line again. He played as an ace for France after the Hangzhou Asian Games. At his first Olympics, he made a mark on Korean archery and cheered.
사진=Yonhap News
사진=Yonhap News
South Korea was the strongest favorite. There was no disagreement. South Korea tied for first place overall in the ranking round held on the 25th. Kim Woo-jin scored 686 points and Kim Je-deok scored 682 points, ranking first and second. Lee Woo-suk also ranked fifth with 681 points. The three scored a total of 2049 points to become the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Thanks to this, Korea started with the quarterfinals in the team event.
The arrow was sharp. South Korea easily defeated Japan 6-0 (57-53, 59-55, 57-54) in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, they beat China 5-1 (54-54, 57-54, 56-53). The last opponent was France. 'Home team' France is Italy in the quarterfinals. He beat Turkiye in each of the semifinals and joined the final stage.
The door to the final game has opened. The final was the final. Both teams showed off their sharp bow tips. South Korea's Lee Woo-suk and Kim Je-deok each scored 10 points. Kim Woo-jin scored nine points. France were 9-10-9 points. South Korea scored 10-8-10 on the second foot. Kim Je-deok was slightly shaken, but Kim Woo-jin cheered by shooting 10 points. France also left 9-10-10. The two teams shared one point side by side.
The second edition has begun. The three Taegeuk Warriors collaborated 10-10-10 side by side. France was 9-9-10. The second bow was also fierce for Korea. Lee Woo-seok and Kim Je-deok hit 10 points in a row as if competing. Kim Woo-jin had nine points. France also scored 10-10-10, but failed to overcome Korea. South Korea has won two sets.
The third set was France's first. France shot 9-9. Korea did not give a break. Lee Woo-seok and Kim Je-deok shot 10 points in a row. Kim Woo-jin added nine points. France has shown its concentration. Chasing to the end with a 10-10-9 run. South Korea finished the finale with Lee Woo-suk, Kim Je-deok and Kim Woo-jin shooting 10 points in a row.
