(Asian Games) S. Korean taekwondo fighter targets Tokyo 2020 after winning gold

All News 00:30 August 21, 2018

By Joo Kyung-don

JAKARTA, Aug. 20 (Yonhap) -- It seems there's no Asian rival for South Korean taekwondo fighter Kim Tae-hun.

Kim won a gold medal in the men's 58-kilogram taekwondo "kyorugi" (sparring) competition at the 18th Asian Games on Monday after defeating Niyaz Pulatov of Uzbekistan 24-6 in the final.

It was his second career Asian Games gold. He topped the men's 54kg division at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon.

He is now the fourth South Korean to win back-to-back Asiad golds in taekwondo, but Kim is the first one to do so in two different weight classes.

"Four years ago, I was just a prospect, but now that I'm world No. 1, others fighters make thorough preparations when they meet me," Kim said at Jakarta Convention Center in Jakarta, the venue of the Asiad taekwondo competition. "I'm happy to get a positive result after overcoming those challenges."

South Korean taekwondo fighter Kim Tae-hun shows his gold medal during the medal ceremony of the men's 58-kilogram taekwondo "kyorugi" (sparring) competition at the 18th Asian Games in Jakarta on Aug. 20, 2018. (Yonhap)

But Kim's gold medal run at Jakarta-Palembang 2018 wasn't a walk in the park. He had a tight match against Yeldos Yskak of Kazakhstan in the quarterfinal and narrowly beat his opponent 11-9.

"He wasn't the strongest fighter, so I thought I would win easily" he said. "I couldn't play my game, and I was mad at myself. But my coach told me to calm down, and I was able to get a good result in the end."

After accomplishing his Asian Games goal, Kim has set his sight on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, an obvious move for the 24-year-old.

With three world championship titles, and now with two Asian Games golds, an Olympic gold medal is the only missing thing from Kim's glittering resume. He settled for bronze at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

"The 2016 Olympics was the biggest competition that I competed in, but it's pity that I couldn't give my best performance from the start," he said. "But I was able to make progress with that experience."

Kim will have some time to rest after winning the gold in Jakarta, but the taekwondo practitioner said his plan for Tokyo 2020 is already on track.

"The Asian Games is not my final destination," he said. "I'm still young and I know what I have to do at the Tokyo Olympics. Until then, I'll perform well in other competitions to get ready."