Kim Min-seop wins bronze in men's 200m butterfly swimming
Summary
Kim Min-seop won bronze in the men’s 200m butterfly in Tokyo on Friday, earning his first individual Asian Games swimming medal. He finished third in 1:55.94 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, edging Wang Xizhe of China by 0.01 second. Wang Kuan-hung of Chinese Taipei won gold, and Xu Fang of China took silver. Kim said the result gave him a bigger target for the world championships next year and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
Key Facts
- Kim’s bronze was his first individual Asian Games swimming medal.
- His time was 1:55.94, just 0.01 second ahead of China’s Wang Xizhe.
- Wang Kuan-hung of Chinese Taipei won gold in 1:55.05, while Xu Fang of China took silver in 1:55.65.
- Kim had already won silver in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay and bronze in the 4x200m freestyle relay for swimming the heats.
- Kim said he wants to reach the podium at the world championships next year and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
South Korea's Kim Min-seop celebrates after winning bronze in the men's 200-meter butterfly swimming event for the Asian Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre in Tokyo, Sept. 25. Yonhap
TOKYO — Kim Min-seop won his first individual Asian Games swimming medal on Friday with his bronze in the men's 200-meter butterfly event.
Kim finished third with a time of 1:55.94 at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, holding off Wang Xizhe of China by one-hundredth of a second.
Wang Kuan-hung of Chinese Taipei won the gold in 1:55.05, and Xu Fang of China was the silver medalist at 1:55.65.
Kim had earlier received silver in the men's 4x100m freestyle relay and bronze in the 4x200m freestyle relay for competing in the heats.
In the butterfly final, Kim touched the 100m pad in second place and remained in the silver medal position with 50m to go.
But he slowed considerably in the home stretch, as his final split of 30.74 seconds was the sixth-slowest in the 10-man final.
"This was the first time I got into the 1:55 range since the Olympics (in 2024). And when I heard my parents and teammates screaming from the stands, I figured I had won a medal," Kim said. "Then when I saw the board, I saw No. 3 next to my name and I won bronze by 0.01 second. I felt really lucky."
Kim, 22, said the bronze medal here gave him a bigger target to shoot for going forward.
"I think my best time would have been good enough for gold here," Kim said. "I would love to reach the podium at the world championships next year and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028."
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