(Asiad) Shooting champion pinches herself after record-breaking run to gold

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NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 23 (Yonhap) -- Pistol shooter Choo Ga-eun carries a small four-leaf clover, the universal symbol of good luck, on her backpack, and she ended up being the lucky charm for the national team at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Wednesday.

Choo delivered South Korea its first gold medal of this year's competition, taking the women's 10-meter air pistol title with an Asian record score of 246.3 points at Aichi Prefectural General Shooting.

Choo Ga-eun of South Korea smiles on the podium after winning gold in the women's 10-meter air pistol shooting event at the Asian Games at Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Gallery in Toyota, Japan, on Sept. 23, 2026. (Yonhap)

"I thought it was a dream," Choo said afterward. "I never once thought I would set any record. And I could not believe it even after I got the record."

In a sport that often features nail-biting battles, Choo had a relatively stress-free run to the top of the podium. Choo beat Shen Yiyao of China by five points, and the gap could easily have been much larger if Choo had not hit an uncharacteristically low 9.8 points with her final shot.

"This doesn't feel like an Asian Games. I felt like I was just in Japan for some random international event," Choo said. "I did not feel that much pressure, and I felt quite calm out there. I think that helped me put up such a good score."

Before the individual final, Choo helped South Korea win silver in the team competition, which awards medals based on combined scores of three shooters per nation in their individual qualification round. Choo led the way with an Asian Games qualification record of 582 points.

South Korea came into Wednesday with one silver and two bronze medals in shooting, an underwhelming total for a country that snapped up 14 medals at the 2023 Asiad. Head coach Chang Kap-seok had boldly projected five gold medals for his team this year, but it may fall short of that target.

And Chang was reduced to tears Wednesday when discussing the team's performance to this point.

"It has been a tough going for us, ever since we got shut out of a gold medal on the first day," Chang said. "I want to thank Ga-eun for coming through."

Choo will chase her third medal in the mixed 10m air pistol mixed team event on Friday.

Choo Ga-eun of South Korea poses with her gold medal won in the women's 10-meter air pistol shooting event at the Asian Games at Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Gallery in Toyota, Japan, on Sept. 23, 2026. (Yonhap)

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(Asiad) Shooting champion pinches herself after record-breaking run to gold

这将使谷歌能够向您展示与您的搜索匹配或相关的韩联社新闻文章。

日本名古屋，9月23日（韩联社）——手枪射击运动员秋佳恩的背包上挂着一株小小的四叶草，这是象征好运的通用符号，结果她成了周三在爱知-名古屋亚运会上日本国家队的幸运符。

秋美智在爱知县综合射击比赛中以 246.3 分的亚洲纪录成绩夺得女子 10 米气手枪冠军，为韩国赢得了今年比赛的第一枚金牌。

2026年9月23日，在日本丰田市爱知县综合射击场举行的亚运会女子10米气手枪射击比赛中，韩国选手秋佳恩获得金牌后，在领奖台上露出笑容。（韩联社）

“我当时觉得像做梦一样，”秋信守赛后说道。“我从没想过自己会打破任何纪录。即使打破纪录之后，我仍然难以置信。”

在这项经常上演惊心动魄的比赛中，秋信守一路相对轻松地登上了最高领奖台。她以5分的优势击败了中国选手沈亦尧，如果不是最后一投出罕见的9.8分，分差本可以更大。

“这感觉不像是一届亚运会。感觉就像是去日本参加一个普通的国际赛事，”秋信守说。“我没感到太大的压力，在场上也很平静。我想这帮助我取得了这么好的成绩。”

在个人决赛之前，秋信守帮助韩国队在团体赛中获得银牌。团体赛的奖牌是根据每个国家三名射击运动员在个人资格赛中的总成绩评定的。秋信守以582分的亚运会资格赛纪录领衔韩国队。

截至周三，韩国射击队仅获得一枚银牌和两枚铜牌，对于一个在2023年亚运会上斩获14枚奖牌的国家来说，这样的成绩令人失望。主教练张甲锡曾大胆预测今年韩国队将获得五枚金牌，但最终可能未能实现这一目标。

周三，在谈到球队迄今为止的表现时，张教练一度哽咽落泪。

“自从第一天与金牌失之交臂后，我们一路走来都很艰难，”张佳恩说。“我要感谢佳恩的出色表现。”

秋美智将于周五在混合10米气手枪团体赛中力争第三枚奖牌。

2026年9月23日，韩国选手秋佳恩在日本丰田市爱知县综合射击场举行的亚运会女子10米气手枪射击比赛中获得金牌，并展示奖牌。（韩联社）

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