(Asian Games) Taekwondo star looking to become 3-time champ

All News 11:00 August 22, 2018

By Joo Kyung-don

JAKARTA, Aug. 22 (Yonhap) -- Lee Dae-hoon will try to become the first South Korean taekwondo fighter to claim gold in three straight Asian Games on Thursday.

Lee grabbed gold in the men's 63-kilogram division at the 2010 Guangzhou Asiad and 2014 Incheon Asiad. For Jakarta-Palembang 2018, he will compete in the men's 68kg division taekwondo "kyorugi" (sparring) competition at the Jakarta Convention Center in Jakarta.

Lee, who has silver from the 2012 London Olympics and bronze from the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, is considered the top dog in the competition.

Following Lee in taekwondo is high school student Kang Bo-ra, who will make her Asian Games debut in the women's 49kg division.

Kang, 17, earned the national team spot after edging the 2016 Olympic champion Kim So-hui and the 2017 World Championship winner Sim Jae-young. She is known for her taekkyon-style kicks.

South Korean taekwondo fighter Lee Dae-hoon (L) speaks at a media event at the National Training Center in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, on Aug. 8, 2018. Sitting next to Lee is Kang Bo-ra. (Yonhap)

In fencing, Jeon Hee-sook will try to become a double gold medalist at Jakarta-Palembang 2018. She successfully defended her Asian Games gold in the women's individual foil Monday. South Korea will also try to defend its title in the men's team sabre.

The men's under-23 national football team will have their first knockout stage match against Iran in Chikarang, east of Jakarta.

The young Taeguk Warriors with Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-min had a disappointing group stage campaign. They beat Bahrain 6-0 but suffered a shocking 2-1 loss to Malaysia and barely beat Kyrgyzstan 1-0.

The women's national volleyball team, featuring the world's top spiker Kim Yeon-koung, will face top dog China in a Group B match. The women's national handball team will take on Kazakhstan.

In Palembang, the unified Korean rowing team in the men's lightweight four will perform in the finals.

The team comprised of South Korea's Park Tae-hyun and Kim Su-min and North Korea's Kim Chol-jin and Yun Chol-jin will compete against India, Indonesia, China, Uzbekistan and Hong Kong for the gold medal.