South Korea's Men's Hockey Team Crushes Bangladesh 5-0 for a Smooth Start

The South Korean men's hockey team has made a strong start in its quest for consecutive medals at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

Led by head coach Min Tae-seok, the national team defeated Bangladesh 5-0 today (the 18th) in its opening Group A match of the tournament's group stage, held at the Green Stadium Kakamigahara in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, powered by a flurry of goals in the second quarter from Bae Seong-min (Seongnam City Hall), Oh Se-yong (Gimhae City Hall), and Lee Gang-san (Incheon City Sports Council).

The men's hockey team previously won the bronze medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, returning to the podium eight years after the 2014 Incheon Games.

Competing in Group A alongside powerhouse India and host nation Japan for a spot in the semifinals, South Korea has kicked off the tournament smoothly with one win and three points.

In a scoreless tie, South Korea broke the deadlock 5 minutes and 20 seconds into the second quarter when Bae Seong-min slid to push a loose ball into the net with his stick.

Less than a minute later, Oh Se-yong fired a powerful diagonal shot from the left side of the goal to extend the lead to 2-0.

Right before the end of the second quarter, Lee Gang-san redirected the ball with his stick amidst a scramble in front of the goal to score an additional point.

South Korea sealed the victory with a mid-range shot by team captain Yang Ji-hoon off a penalty corner opportunity at the start of the third quarter, followed by a field goal from Shim Jae-won (both from Gimhae City Hall) right before the end of the fourth quarter.

South Korea will play its second match against Indonesia at 11:00 AM on the 22nd at the same venue.

(Photo provided by the Korea Hockey Association, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.