swimmer-future races
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| ▲ Hwang Sun-woo of South Korea competes in the final of the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 25, 2023. (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ Hwang Sun-woo of South Korea holds up his bronze medal from the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 25, 2023. (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ Hwang Sun-woo of South Korea competes in the final of the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 25, 2023. (Yonhap) |
swimmer-future races
With one nat'l record broken, swimmer Hwang Sun-woo sets sights on another
By Yoo Jee-ho
FUKUOKA, Japan, July 25 (Yonhap) -- After breaking one of his two national records in freestyle swimming on Tuesday in Japan, South Korean star Hwang Sun-woo quickly shifted his focus to the other record.
Hwang won bronze in the men's 200-meter freestyle at the world championships in Fukuoka, with a new South Korean record of 1:44.42. Hwang had held the previous mark of 1:44.47, set at last year's world championships when he won the silver medal.
Hwang also owns the 100m freestyle national mark at 47.56 seconds, set at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. And as far as Hwang is concerned, it has been too long.
"It's already been two years since I set that record, and I really want to improve on that time," Hwang said. "I want to get it done here in Fukuoka. The conditions are similar (to the Tokyo Olympics), and I want to start putting up some fast times from the heats tomorrow and reach the final."
It will be a quick turnaround for Hwang. The 200m freestyle final began just past 8 p.m. Tuesday. He will be swimming in the 12th and final group in the 100m freestyle heats at 11:13 a.m. Wednesday. If he finishes among the top 16 there, he will advance to the semifinals, scheduled for about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
In the 100m freestyle at last year's worlds, Hwang was eliminated in the semifinals with a time of 48.08 seconds.
Hwang's main event is the 200m. But if he does the improbable and wins a medal in the 100m, Hwang would become only the second South Korean swimmer, after Park Tae-hwan in 2007, to win multiple medals at the same world championships.
It would also raise Hwang's career world championships medals tally to three, putting him on par with Park.
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