South Korea Wins Bronze in Men's 4x100m Relay with National Record of 38.43 Seconds

The South Korean men's 4x100m relay national team has won a bronze medal while setting a new national record at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

The team, consisting of Seo Min-jun (Seocheon County Office), Namadi Joel Jin (Yecheon County Office), Lee Jae-sung (Gwangju City Hall, Jeollanam-do), and Bewesa Daniel Kasama (Ansan City Hall), crossed the finish line third with a national record of 38.43 seconds behind China (38.17 seconds) and Chinese Taipei (38.32 seconds) in the men's 4x100m relay final held today (the 28th) at the Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium in Nagoya, Japan.

Starting in lane 1, Seo Min-jun poured all his energy into accelerating and smoothly passed the baton to the second runner, Namadi Joel Jin.

Bewesa, who received the baton after passing through Lee Jae-sung, finished the race in third place after a fierce competition with Chinese Taipei's final runner, Yang Chun-han.

Thailand's final runner Puripol Boonson, who swept the men's 100m and 200m events at this tournament, fiercely chased Bewesa, but Bewesa successfully fended off the challenge.

Thailand, considered a favorite to win, finished fourth with 38.49 seconds, while Japan placed fifth with 38.57 seconds.

During yesterday's preliminary heat in group 2, the South Korean team was initially disqualified after it was judged that first runner Kim Si-on (Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps) and second runner Namadi Joel Jin crossed the baton handover zone boundary, but they were reinstated following an appeal process.

Advancing dramatically to the final stage, the four runners raced with all their might to stand on the podium.

The South Korean men's relay team successfully secured a medal for the second consecutive tournament, following the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games (bronze medal).

In addition, they broke the previous national record of 38.49 seconds set by Seo Min-jun, Namadi Joel Jin, Lee Jae-sung, and Lee Jun-hyuk at the Asian Athletics Championships in May of last year.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.