▲ South Korea and Chinese Taipei face off in the Group B preliminary match of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games baseball tournament. In the bottom of the 7th inning with runners on 1st and 3rd and no outs, South Korea's Park Jun-soon hits an RBI double and celebrates.
The national baseball team, which greenlit its path straight to the finals by defeating Chinese Taipei in its opening match of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, is looking forward to winning an actual gold medal with their "Gold celebration."
Back in March this year at the World Baseball Classic (WBC), national team hitters performed an airplane celebration—extending both arms whenever they hit safely and reached base—to express their determination to board a chartered flight and head to the United States where the quarterfinals were held, fulfilling their goal.
The national team players unveiled a new celebration yesterday (September 21) after defeating Chinese Taipei 5-0 at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Baseball Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.
They form a mountain with both hands, mimicking the top shape of the Chinese character for gold (金).
Led by captain Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha Eagles) and joined by everyone, anyone can immediately tell at a glance that this celebration means they intend to return home with gold medals around their necks.
Winning a gold medal at the Asian Games or a bronze medal or higher at the Olympics provides military service exemptions.
Among the 24 players on this national baseball roster, 16 have yet to complete their military service.
Relief pitcher Cho Byung-hyun (SSG Landers) joined the national team after having already fulfilled his military duty separately.
Seven players who enjoyed military service benefits as members of the winning squad at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games—Kwak Bin (Doosan Bears), Park Young-hyun (kt wiz), Noh Si-hwan, Moon Bo-kyung (LG Twins), Kim Ji-chan (Samsung Lions), Kim Joo-won (NC Dinos), and Yoon Dong-hee (Lotte Giants)—are competing in this tournament as well, in accordance with the provision requiring them to "obligatorily participate when called up for the national team over the next 5 years."
In the match against Chinese Taipei, Kwak Bin laid the groundwork for victory with a scoreless stellar pitching performance, striking out 10 batters over 6 innings, while Kim Joo-won went 3-for-4 with two crucial advancement hits.
Yoon Dong-hee came in as a pinch hitter in the 8th inning and drove in a massive solo home run to seal the win.
It was a game that clearly demonstrated the seasoned experience of the "seniors" who have already collected gold medals.
If the seven Hangzhou champion members pull from the front and the 16 players who have yet to fulfill their military service push hard from behind while soaking up their energy, South Korea's baseball team can easily achieve its goal of winning 5 consecutive Asian Games titles.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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