South Korea Men's Handball Team Reaches Asian Games Semifinals, Set to Face Qatar

The men's national handball team has returned to the semifinals of the Asian Games for the first time in eight years.

Led by head coach Cho Young-shin, the national team defeated China 32-26 in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at the Kasugai City Gymnasium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on September 26.

With this victory, the national team has advanced to the semifinals for the first time in eight years since the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, where they won the bronze medal.

South Korea will compete for a spot in the final against Qatar, which is aiming for its fourth consecutive title, at 5:30 PM on September 28 at the Entrio Inazawa in Aichi Prefecture.

Qatar defeated Iran 31-25 in their quarterfinal match.

After a 5-5 tie early in the first half, South Korea widened the gap to 8-5 by capitalizing on a breakthrough goal by Kim Jin-young (Armed Forces Athletic Corps) followed by three consecutive goals from Jeon Jin-soo (Incheon Metropolitan City Corporation) and Yeon Min-mo (hanam city hall).

Ending the first half with a four-goal lead at 16-12, the team maintained the gap before securing their semifinal berth with about five minutes left in the second half, pulling away 30-22 thanks to two 6-meter shots by Park Se-woong (SK Hawks) and a 9-meter goal by Kim Rak-chan (Incheon Metropolitan City Corporation).

Kim Rak-chan and Park Se-woong led the offense by scoring six goals each, while Kim Jin-young and Lee Yo-seop (Incheon Metropolitan City Corporation) contributed five goals apiece.

(Photo: Provided by the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Organizing Committee, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.