▲ South Korea's Woo Sang-hyeok holds up his bronze medal after the men's high jump final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games at the Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Nagoya, Japan, on the 27th. (Photo: Yonhap News)
High jump star Woo Sang-hyeok (Yongin City Hall) revealed that his injury last May, initially reported as a "light abrasion," was actually severe enough to rupture a ligament in the top of his foot, and that he barely managed to stand on the stage of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games following a grueling rehabilitation.
After winning the bronze medal by clearing 2.22 meters in the men's high jump final at the Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Nagoya, Japan, yesterday (the 27th), Woo said, "I've had a lot of hard times this year. It seems good results came out of a bad situation. It feels like a message telling me to 'keep challenging yourself until the Los Angeles Olympics.'"
He added, "As there were many regrets in my preparation process and today's match, I will continue to work even harder on my challenges moving forward."
On this day, Woo revealed the reality of the injury he sustained last May.
"During the competition, my spike split, forcing me to take off barefoot, which ruptured a ligament in the top of my foot," he shared. "My foot swelled up so much that I couldn't walk, and the hospital said I needed to wear a cast for a month or two. However, as I trained forcefully before fully healing, the injury worsened."
The injury left scars not only on his body but also on his mental state.
Woo confessed, "I thought I was good at forgetting bad memories, but that wasn't the case. From then on, the bar started looking higher, and my confidence began to drop. A sense of rejection arose regarding jumping over the bar."
Woo injured his left foot amid an unexpected situation where his spikes tore during the Seiko Golden Grand Prix held in Tokyo, Japan, last May.
The injury, which was initially known as an "abrasion," was actually much more serious.
Woo was unable to compete in planned tournaments for about three months afterward, and even after his return, he suffered from a severe slump.
At the Silesia Diamond League in Poland last month, he failed to clear his opening height of 2.16 meters and finished the competition without an official record, and at the Heilbronn International High Jump meeting in Germany, he managed only 2.14 meters to place 12th.
These performances fell far short of both his personal best (2.36 meters) and his personal best for the current season (2.30 meters).
"I finished last in two consecutive competitions. It was an experience I had never been through before," Woo said. "However, those two competitions were a big help to me. Up until then, I had fear and a sense of rejection toward jumping itself, but going through the process of finishing last allowed me to overcome the trauma to a certain extent."
Having regained his confidence, Woo bravely stepped onto the Asian Games stage, securing the joy of winning a medal for the third consecutive time following the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games (silver) and the 2022 Hangzhou Games (silver).
Although 2.22 meters is a low record for Woo, the result is special because he achieved it after overcoming a difficult process.
"2.22 meters is a height I recorded by overcoming trauma," Woo vowed. "I will engrave this in my heart and move forward again for the 2027 World Athletics Championships and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics."
Continuing his interview with a hoarse voice, Woo smiled and said, "My voice is in bad shape because I kept shouting throughout the match to encourage myself. In truth, it was so tough ahead of this competition that I couldn't even believe in myself. Now, I can finally believe in myself again."
When asked if his anxiety grew after failing his first attempt at 2.14 meters—his second height challenge—he stated, "There was no such thing. I have never failed to clear 2.14 meters. I approached this competition with the mindset of believing in myself, so I jumped with confidence, and it seems to have led to a precious medal."
The gold medal on this day went to Fu Chao-hsuan of Taiwan, who cleared 2.25 meters on his first attempt, while the silver medal was won by Sarvesh Anil Kushare of India, who cleared 2.25 meters on his second attempt.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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