South Korean wushu fighter Kim Myeong-jin won gold in the men’s sanda under-75 kg event at the Incheon Asian Games on Wednesday.
In a closely contested final held at Ganghwa Dolmens Gymnasium in the western port city, Kim defeated Iran’s Hamid Reza Ladvar by the round score of 2-1.
After losing the first round, Kim, 26, turned the match around by winning the remaining rounds.
Wushu fighter Kim Myeong-jin celebrates his gold medal. (Yonhap)
“Even after the first round was over, I was sure of winning the third round,” said Kim in tears after the match.
“I did so much training (prior to Incheon Asian Games). If someone told me to do it again, I could never do it.”
Kim’s victory is South Korea’s first Asiad gold at sanda competitions.
In the men’s sanda under-70 kg final held at the same gymnasium earlier on Wednesday, South Korea’s Yoo Sang-hoon grabbed silver, losing to China’s Zhang Kun by the round score of 0-2.
China has been a powerhouse in the traditional martial arts discipline, but Iranian practitioners have recently emerged as strong medal contenders.
The two countries snatched all seven wushu golds at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games.
Kim brought South Korea’s gold medal tally in wushu to two at the ongoing Asiad.
On Saturday, Lee Ha-sung won the country’s first gold in the men’s chanquan. (Yonhap)
