Lee Woo-seok captured the men’s individual recurve gold medal at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, defeating Japan’s Junya Nakanishi 6-2 at the Okazaki Integrated Central Park multi-purpose square in Aichi Prefecture. The 29-year-old South Korean archer secured set scores of 29-26, 27-27, 29-29, and 29-27 on October 3 to claim his first individual Asian Games title in three appearances.
Okazaki Archery Final Sets Golden Standard
Competing away from home against local contender Junya Nakanishi, Lee established control early by landing two 10-point arrows in the opening set to take a 29-26 lead. After trading points through a 27-27 second set and a 29-29 third set, Lee maintained a 4-2 margin before closing the match decisively in the fourth. He posted another 29-point frame featuring two more 10s, leaving Nakanishi at 27 to seal the 6-2 victory.
Lee Secures Second Gold Medal at Aichi-Nagoya Games
The individual triumph delivered Lee’s second gold medal of the 2026 Games, following a victory in the men’s team event alongside teammates Kim Woo-jin and Kim Jae-deuk. Lee became the fifth South Korean athlete to secure a double crown at the Aichi-Nagoya Games, lifting his career total to four Asian Games gold medals after winning the team and mixed team titles at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.
With this performance, Lee completed a full set of individual Asian Games medals across his career. He previously earned a silver medal at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games while fulfilling military service—falling in the final to Kim Woo-jin—and took bronze at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.
Rescuing South Korea’s Archery Standing
Lee’s gold medal arrived at a critical juncture for South Korea’s delegation, which faced an unprecedented slump in the archery events. Following a sweep of all gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the nation’s squads experienced unexpected setbacks in Japan. The women’s team saw an eight-victory gold streak snapped and finished without a gold in the category for the first time in the 48-year history of the Asian Games, earning silver in the individual event after a shoot-off alongside a bronze in the mixed team competition. Meanwhile, the men’s side faced pressure after Kim Jae-deuk exited the individual tournament in the round of 16, leaving Lee to shoulder the final title defense.
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