Published : Aug. 15, 2016 - 10:23
The Olympic taekwondo title favorite Lee Dae-hoon on Sunday said he's never been in better form in his career.
Lee and the rest of the South Korean taekwondo team arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday, three days before the start of their competition at the ongoing Summer Games. They had been training in Sao Paulo for two weeks.
Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald
Lee, a gold medal favorite in the 68kg, sounded confident ahead of his second Olympics.
"I am sure I can get better as I keep training, but I think I am in my best shape right now," Lee said at Galeao International Airport. "I've prepared a great deal, and there's nothing more I can do. I think it will come down to who will compete with more confidence."
Lee won silver in the 58kg class at the 2012 London Olympics.
He has often said moving up a weight class has done wonders to his psyche because he no longer has to worry about keeping his weight down in the days leading up to the competition, and he can just focus on actual training.
"I think I should just try to control my own emotions and show what I've got," he said. "I know I can't do my best if I am too conscious of the pressure. I will try to stay relaxed."
Lee has won every major taekwondo title except for an Olympic gold -- a world championship, an Asian Games gold and an Asian championship. A gold in Rio would complete the picture.
The men's 68kg will take place Thursday. (Yonhap)