South Korea dominated the taekwondo court on the inaugural day of the Hangzhou Asian Games, clinching gold medals in both men's and women's individual poomsae events on Sunday.
Kang Wan-jin and Cha Yea-eun emerged victorious in the men's and women's categories, respectively, echoing their triumphs at the Chengdu Universiade in July.
The 24-year-old world champion Kang exhibited stellar form from the outset of the preliminary round. He secured the gold with precision in the final, besting Ma Yunzhong of Chinese Taipei.
"When I stepped onto the podium, I vividly remember all the efforts I've put in. Today, I feel very happy," Kang said after the game.
Having recovered from a broken Achilles tendon in 2021, Kang attributed his comeback victory at the Hangzhou Asian Games to relentless training.
On the women's side, Cha gained an edge from the initial set of movements in her final against Yuiko Niwa. She clinched the victory with a total score of 105.8 points, 5.5 points ahead of the Japanese opponent.
"The match went really well and I was able to shine even more in such a big match. I'm glad I played a match without regrets," Cha said.
With these two golds, South Korea solidified its leadership in the overall Asian Games taekwondo medal tally, amassing an impressive 60 gold medals since the sport's introduction in Seoul in 1986.
Three additional taekwondo golds are up for contention on Sunday, in the men's 58kg, women's 49kg, and mixed team categories.
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