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[스포츠뉴스]Korea's top swimmers prepare for world championships: 'I want to be back on that podium'

온카뱅크관리자

2025-07-09 17:45:00

<div class="ab_photo photo_center ">  <div class="image">   <span class="end_photo_org"><img src="https://imgnews.pstatic.net/image/640/2025/07/09/0000073161_001_20250709174614857.jpg" alt="" /><em class="img_desc">From left, swimmers Kim Woo-min, Hwang Sun-woo and Lee Ho-joon train at the Jincheon National Training Center in North Chungcheong on July 8. [YONHAP]</em></span>   <span class="mask"></span>  </div>  </div>    <br> Korean swimming headliners Kim Woo-min and Hwang Sun-woo are back together on the global stage, chasing more hardware &#8212; and hoping to share the podium once again.  <br>    <br> The swimmers will dive into the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore this week with targets on their backs as defending world champions.  <br>    <br>  Kim, 24, is looking to repeat in the 400-meter freestyle. Hwang, 22, will try to extend his medal streak in the 200 meters to four straight world meets.  <br>    <br> A year ago at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Kim and Hwang pulled off something no Korean duo had done before: they both won gold at the same world championships.  <br>    <br> Kim took the 400 free, then Hwang followed up in the 200, rewriting Korean swimming history in just a few days.  <br>    <br> “This time, I’m competing as the reigning champion, so I’m putting in even more effort to keep that title,” Kim said Tuesday at a media day at Jincheon National Training Center in North Chungcheong.   <br>    <br> Hwang added, “It’s already my fifth world championships. I trained hard because I want to be back on that podium for the fourth time in a row.”  <br>    <br> <div class="ab_photo photo_center ">  <div class="image">   <span class="end_photo_org"><img src="https://imgnews.pstatic.net/image/640/2025/07/09/0000073161_002_20250709174614967.jpg" alt="" /><em class="img_desc">Swimmer Kim Woo-min trains at the Jincheon National Training Center in North Chungcheong on July 8. [YONHAP]</em></span>   <span class="mask"></span>  </div>  </div>    <br> Kim proved at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris that he’s built for big moments, snagging bronze in the 400-meter freestyle just five months after Doha. Now, he’s chasing his personal best of 3:42.42 from last year’s Mare Nostrum meet, skipping the 1,500 to put everything into his top event.  <br>    <br> “My goal is, of course, is to stand on the top again,” Kim said. “But right now, the other guys are posting great times, so I can’t guarantee gold. Still, once we’re racing, who knows? I just want to keep pushing my own limits.”  <br>    <br> Hwang will look to shake off the sting of missing the 200-meter final in Paris. He’s already Korea’s only swimmer with three straight world medals in the event &#8212; silver in 2022, bronze in 2023 and gold last year. This time, he’s eyeing four.  <br>    <br> “Since the Hangzhou Asian Games [last September], I haven’t managed to beat my best time [of 1:44.40]. I’d really love to lower it even a little,” he said.  <br>    <br> <div class="ab_photo photo_center ">  <div class="image">   <span class="end_photo_org"><img src="https://imgnews.pstatic.net/image/640/2025/07/09/0000073161_003_20250709174615074.jpg" alt="" /><em class="img_desc">From left, swimmers Kim Young-beom, Kim Woo-min, Hwang Sun-woo and Lee Ho-joon pose for a photo at the Jincheon National Training Center in North Chungcheong on July 8. [YONHAP]</em></span>   <span class="mask"></span>  </div>  </div>    <br> The two aren’t just banking on individual glory. They’ll also anchor Korea’s 4x200-meter freestyle relay, hoping to top last year’s historic silver with Lee Ho-joon and a new face: 19-year-old Kim Young-beom, replacing Yang Jae-hoon.  <br>    <br> Kim Young-beom is a rising star who stunned the field at April’s trials by beating Hwang in the 100 free, clocking 47.98 to easily clear the World Aquatics' qualifying mark of 48.34.  <br>    <br> “Before, our fourth leg of the relay was always a bit of a drop-off,” said a Korea Swimming Federation spokesperson. “With Kim Young-beom, we finally have all the pieces.”  <br>    <br> <div class="ab_photo photo_center ">  <div class="image">   <span class="end_photo_org"><img src="https://imgnews.pstatic.net/image/640/2025/07/09/0000073161_004_20250709174615161.jpg" alt="" /><em class="img_desc">From left, swimmers Kim Young-beom, Kim Woo-min, Hwang Sun-woo and Lee Ho-joon train at the Jincheon National Training Center in North Chungcheong on July 8. [YONHAP]</em></span>   <span class="mask"></span>  </div>  </div>    <br> Kim Young-beom didn’t hide his ambitions. “I want to team up with my older brothers and break the world record,” he said, drawing playful eyerolls from his veteran teammates.  <br>    <br> Hwang smiled. “We put as much focus on the relay as we do on the 200 free,” he said.  <br>    <br> “It’s great for us &#8212; we push each other, and it shows. Young-beom has been strong lately, even bringing his 200 down to the low 1:46s. If all four of us can set personal bests, even something like becoming the best in the world might just be possible.”  <br>    <br> Kim Woo-min agreed.   <br>    <br> “Standing on that podium with my teammates last time was incredible,” he said. “That’s why this relay medal is even more special to me. I want that feeling again.”  <br><br><i>Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.</i>

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