South Korea's national men's and women's hockey teams, aiming for consecutive dual medals at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, both kicked off their campaigns with victories.

The men's team, led by head coach Min Tae-seok, defeated Bangladesh 5-0 in their Group A preliminary match at the Green Stadium Kakamigahara in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, today (September 18), propelled 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).

In the subsequent match at the same venue, the women's team, guided by head coach Kim Yong-su, overcame Chinese Taipei 3-1 in their Group A opener.

At the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, South Korean hockey was the only team ball sport category where both the men's and women's teams reached the podium.

The men's team claimed the bronze medal, returning to the podium for the first time in eight years since the 2014 Incheon Games, while the women's team finished as runners-up after losing to China.

The men's team, competing in Group A alongside powerhouse India and host nation Japan for a spot in the semifinals, made a fresh start to the tournament with one win and 3 points.

Breaking a 0-0 deadlock, South Korea drew first blood 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 sharp diagonal shot from the left side of the circle to extend the lead to 2-0.

Right before the end of the second quarter, Lee Gang-san redirected a scramble in front of the goal with his stick to add another.

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

The women's team captured victory thanks to the stellar performance of players from the Hangzhou Games silver-medal-winning squad.

Park Seung-ae (KT) opened the scoring with a powerful shot during a penalty corner opportunity in the first quarter, and added another in the third quarter by gently tapping the ball in during a goalmouth scramble when the opposing goalkeeper left the net open.

Late in the third quarter, while holding a narrow 2-1 lead, Ahn Su-jin (Pyeongtaek City Hall) capitalized on a penalty corner opportunity by driving a powerful shot from the center.

Despite the win, the women's team lamented converting only 2 goals out of 17 penalty corner chances.

The men's team will play their second match against Indonesia at the same venue at 11:00 AM on September 22, while the women's team will face Kazakhstan for their second match a day earlier at 9:00 AM on September 21.

(Photo courtesy of Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Organizing Committee, Yonhap News)