South Korea's men's sabre fencing team pulled off a dramatic come-from-behind victory against Japan in the final to achieve a milestone of four consecutive Asian Games team titles, while the esports combat gaming national team defeated archrival Japan to capture its first-ever gold medal.

The men's sabre team—consisting of Oh Sang-uk, Park Sang-won (both from Daejeon Metropolitan City Council), Do Kyung-dong (Daegu Metropolitan City Council), and Hwang Hee-geun (Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps)—defeated host nation Japan 45-44 to claim the top spot in the men's sabre team final at the Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, today (September 26) at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

This marks their fourth consecutive team title following the 2014 Incheon, 2018 Jakarta-Palembang, and 2022 Hangzhou Games.

Ace Oh Sang-uk, who earlier achieved two consecutive individual titles, secured his second consecutive double crown by landing a lightning-fast thrust in the decisive ninth bout tied at 44-44 to score the final point.

Pocketing his 5th career Asian Games gold medal, Oh closely pursued senior Gu Bon-gil (6 golds), who holds the record for the most gold medals by a South Korean athlete, trailing by just one.

South Korean fencing, which earlier suffered a narrow 1-point defeat to Japan in the women's foil team final to settle for silver, spectacularly exacted revenge through the dramatic, thrilling finish by the men's sabre team.

A precious gold medal was also produced in esports.

The South Korean national team featuring Yeon Je-gil, Bae Jae-min, and Lee Kwang-no defeated host nation Japan with a set score of 5-2 in the final of the esports combat gaming event held at the Aichi Sky Expo, clinching their first-ever gold medal.

In the final alternating between Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, and The King of Fighters XV, South Korea broke a tight 2-2 tie as Bae Jae-min and Yeon Je-gil secured consecutive victories to seize the momentum and reach the top.

Kang Dong-shin, who competed in the esports Puyo Puyo Champions event, took the silver medal after losing 2-10 to Japan's 11-year-old prodigy Yuki Kurihara in the final.

Kurihara went down in history as the youngest gold medalist in Asian Games history.

In canoe sprint, which has transformed into a reliable medal-producing event, two silver medals were poured out.

Competing in the men's kayak single 500m final, Jang Sang-won posted 1 minute 44.433 seconds to take the silver medal behind Uzbekistan's Shakhriyor Makhkamov (1 minute 43.642 seconds).

Having previously claimed a gold medal in the kayak quadruple 500m, Jang reaped his second medal of the competition.

In the mixed kayak double 500m final, the duo of Choi Min-gyu and Sun Min-ju added a silver medal with 1 minute 40.349 seconds, following China (1 minute 39.444 seconds).

Choi Min-gyu, a member of the winning kayak quadruple crew, also secured his second medal of the games.

Bronze medals came from diving and shooting.

The women's diving duo of Kim Na-hyun (Gangwon Provincial Government) and Moon Na-yun (Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Government) scored a total of 276.90 points across dives 1 to 5 in the synchronized 10m platform final held at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, capturing the bronze medal behind China (347.82 points) and North Korea (317.64 points).

In the women's 50m rifle 3 positions final, Kim Ji-eun, competing in her first-ever Asian Games, ranked third with 348.4 points, presenting South Korea with its first medal in this event in 12 years since Jung Mi-ra's silver at the 2014 Incheon Games.

The world's strongest archery team kicked off with a brisk start toward sweeping all events, setting record streaks starting from the ranking round to determine seedings.

Kang Chae-young (Hyundai Mobis) scored 685 out of a possible 720 points in the recurve women's ranking round held at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Ground in Aichi Prefecture, advancing to the main tournament in 1st place, while Kim Je-deok (Yecheon County Office) took 2nd place in the men's recurve with 693 points.

The recurve men's, women's, and mixed team events all swept the top seeds by finishing 1st.

In ball sports, both the men's and women's handball teams delivered simultaneous good news.

The men's handball team led by coach Cho Young-shin routed China 32-26 in the quarterfinals, successfully reaching the semifinals for the first time in 8 years since the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games.

The national team will battle powerhouse Qatar—seeking their fourth consecutive tournament title—for a spot in the final the day after tomorrow (September 28).

Additionally, the South Korean women's handball team crushed Vietnam 46-18 to achieve 5 consecutive wins in the group stage.

South Korea will face Japan tomorrow (September 27) at 6:00 PM in the final preliminary round match to be held at the same venue.

If South Korea draws or wins this match, they will claim the gold medal.

As of 7:30 PM today (September 26), South Korea stands 3rd overall with 15 gold medals, 21 silver medals, and 36 bronze medals.

China leads in 1st place with 105 golds, followed by Japan in 2nd with 31 golds.

Uzbekistan rose to 4th place, pushing past Kazakhstan with 8 gold medals, 17 silver medals, and 9 bronze medals.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)