Shim Jun Defeats 'Asian Games Competitor' Park Si-hoon to Win Third Consecutive Shot Put Title

Shim Jun (Yeongwol County Office), co-holder of the Korean record in the men's shot put, has beaten "Thor" Park Si-hoon (Ulsan Metropolitan City Office)—who competed in the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games—to claim his third consecutive general division title at the National Sports Festival.

Competing in the final of the men's general division shot put at the 107th National Sports Festival held at Gangchanghak Stadium in Seogwipo, Shim took the victory with a throw of 18.68 meters.

Following his wins in 2024 and last year, Shim secured the gold medal in the men's general division shot put at the National Sports Festival for the third consecutive year.

After the event, Shim shared his thoughts, saying, "With some rain and poor weather conditions, it was a difficult situation for everyone, and personally, I don't think I performed as well as I usually do. Still, I am very glad that I was able to achieve my goal of winning the gold medal."

Although he has shown dominant form at recent National Sports Festivals, Shim finished second behind Park at the National Athletics Championships in May—which served as the trials for priority selection for the Asian Games—and failed to meet the qualifying standard, missing out on the Asian Games.

However, at the Miryang Arirang National Athletics Championships held in June, he matched the national record of 19.49 meters set by Jung Il-woo in 2015, and he successfully defended his supremacy at the National Sports Festival as well.

Reflecting on the season, Shim said, "I looked toward the Asian Games, but things turned out to be unfortunate. Looking back on this season, there is nothing but regret." He added, "I believe there are still many opportunities ahead. I will start winter training in about a month, so I plan to rest just a little, prepare well, and work harder than anyone else. I definitely want to set a new Korean record next year."

Park Si-hoon claimed the silver medal in his debut appearance in the general division at the National Sports Festival.

He recorded his best throw of 18.28 meters on his first attempt, but ultimately failed to surpass Shim, who threw 18.68 meters on his second attempt.

Park enjoyed a stellar season this year, setting an under-20 (U-20) Asian record of 20.65 meters (with a 6kg shot) at the Asian U-20 Athletics Championships in August, winning a silver medal at the World Athletics (WA) U-20 Championships, and finishing 12th at the Asian Games.

Following them, Ji Hyun-woo (Paju City Hall) won the bronze medal with a throw of 17.64 meters.

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