From Olympic medal to Asian Games gold: Seong Seung-min's golden rise

Seong Seung-min won the women’s individual modern pentathlon gold at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Anjo, Japan, becoming the first Korean woman to do so. The 23-year-old scored 1,492 points and also gave Korea its first gold medal of the 2026 Games. Her victory completed a rare sweep that also includes a world championship gold and an Olympic bronze.

Seong had been disqualified from the women’s individual competition at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games after her horse stopped during the riding event.

She later won bronze in the team event at Hangzhou and then focused intensely on riding, fencing and shooting.

At the 2024 World Championships, she became the first Korean woman to win an individual medal and took gold, then added another gold in the women’s relay.

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, she finished third in the laser run and won bronze, becoming the first Asian woman to win an Olympic medal in modern pentathlon.

Published Sep 24, 2026 3:20 pm KST

Modern pentathlete Seong Seung-min, who won Korea's first gold medal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, poses with her medal after arriving at Incheon International Airport, Monday. Yonhap

Seong Seung-min has completed a rare sweep of modern pentathlon milestones: a world championship gold, an Olympic medal and, now, an Asian Games title.

The 23-year-old Korean became the first Korean woman to win an individual Asian Games gold medal in modern pentathlon on Saturday, scoring 1,492 points in the final at Anjo Sports Park in Aichi Prefecture. Her victory also delivered Korea’s first gold medal of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Games.

Three years ago, however, Seong’s Asian Games story began with a failure she could hardly have scripted.

At the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, her horse suddenly stopped during the riding event, resulting in her disqualification from the women’s individual competition. She went on to win a bronze medal in the team event, but the individual disappointment stayed with her.

What followed was not a retreat, but a transformation.

Seong focused intensely on riding, once considered one of her weaker disciplines, while also sharpening her fencing and shooting. By 2024, she had emerged as one of the leading figures in Korean modern pentathlon.

She first made her mark on the international circuit with consecutive silver medals at World Cup events. Then came the breakthrough that changed her status from rising prospect to world-class contender.

At the 2024 World Championships, Seong became the first Korean woman to win an individual medal in the competition — and she did it with gold.

She added another gold in the women’s relay, helping establish a new benchmark for Korean women’s modern pentathlon. Her run of results eventually pushed her to No. 1 in the world rankings.

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Seong finished third in the laser run to claim the bronze medal, becoming the first Asian woman to win an Olympic medal in modern pentathlon.

The achievement was followed by another major accolade when the International Modern Pentathlon Union named her its Female Athlete of the Year.

Yet one major title remained missing from her collection. The Asian Games.

Korean women had repeatedly come close to winning the individual title. Yang Su-jin took silver at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, Kim Se-hee finished runner-up at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, and Kim Seon-woo claimed another silver at Hangzhou.

Seong arrived in Japan determined to end that run.

But she faced a new complication: The sport itself had changed.

Following the Hangzhou Games, the riding discipline was replaced by an obstacle event. For Seong, the change was particularly significant. After the disappointment of Hangzhou, she had worked hard to turn riding into a strength and had even recorded a perfect riding score at the Paris Olympics.

Now, she had to start adapting all over again.

The transition was not immediate. At a World Cup in April 2025, Seong made mistakes in the obstacle event and failed to reach the final. But she responded quickly, finishing second at another World Cup just one month later.

Her confidence in the new discipline continued to grow.

At the Aichi-Nagoya Games, Seong set a personal best in the obstacle event, breaking into the 29-second range. She then held her nerve across the remaining disciplines — fencing, swimming and the laser run — to finish first with 1,492 points.

The result marked another first in a career increasingly defined by them.

Seong became the first Korean woman to win the Asian Games individual modern pentathlon title, adding the gold to her world championship victory and Olympic bronze.

After the final, Seong said she was pleased to have completed both the semifinal and final without unnecessary mistakes.

She also said she had changed as a competitor since the Paris Olympics, learning to manage her nerves and enjoy the atmosphere rather than becoming overwhelmed by it.

That composure could prove important as she looks ahead.

Seong has already spoken about her Olympic ambitions. After winning bronze in Paris, she appeared with her hair dyed yellow and said she wanted to turn that bronze into gold at the next Olympics.

For now, she has added another piece to an extraordinary resume.

From the horse that stopped in Hangzhou to the obstacles she conquered in Aichi-Nagoya, Seong’s career has been built around adapting when the sport changes beneath her.

World champion. Olympic medalist. Asian Games winner.

At 23, Seong Seung-min has already cleared nearly every major hurdle modern pentathlon has put in front of her.

成承敏在日本安城市举行的爱知-名古屋亚运会上夺得女子现代五项个人金牌，成为首位获此殊荣的韩国女性。这位23岁的选手以1492分的成绩，为韩国赢得了2026年亚运会的首枚金牌。她的胜利也使韩国实现了罕见的包揽所有亚运会金牌的壮举，此前韩国还曾获得世锦赛金牌和奥运会铜牌。

成洁希在2022年杭州亚运会女子个人赛中，因马匹在比赛过程中突然停止奔跑而被取消比赛资格。

后来她在杭州的团体赛中获得铜牌，之后便专注于骑马、击剑和射击。

在 2024 年世界田径锦标赛上，她成为第一位获得个人奖牌的韩国女性，并获得金牌，随后又在女子接力赛中获得了一枚金牌。

在 2024 年巴黎奥运会上，她在激光跑项目中获得第三名，并赢得铜牌，成为第一位在现代五项奥运会上获得奖牌的亚洲女性。

发布于2026年9月24日下午3:20（韩国标准时间）

现代五项运动员成承珉在2026年爱知-名古屋亚运会上为韩国赢得首枚金牌，周一抵达仁川国际机场后，她手持奖牌拍照留念。（韩联社）

成承珉完成了现代五项运动罕见的里程碑式成就：世界锦标赛金牌、奥运会奖牌，现在又获得了亚运会冠军。

这位23岁的韩国选手周六在爱知县安城体育公园举行的现代五项决赛中，以1492分的成绩成为首位获得亚运会个人金牌的韩国女性。她的胜利也为韩国赢得了2026年爱知-名古屋亚运会的首枚金牌。

然而，三年前，成妍的亚运会故事以一场她几乎无法预料的失败开始。

在2022年杭州亚运会上，她的马在马术比赛中突然停了下来，导致她被取消了女子个人赛的资格。尽管她在团体赛中获得铜牌，但个人赛的失利仍然让她感到遗憾。

接下来发生的不是退缩，而是转变。

成将全部精力投入到马术训练中，马术曾被认为是她的弱项之一，同时她也努力提升击剑和射击水平。到2024年，她已成为韩国现代五项运动的领军人物之一。

她最初在国际赛场上崭露头角，连续获得世界杯赛事的银牌。随后，她取得了突破性进展，从冉冉升起的新星一跃成为世界级选手。

在 2024 年世界锦标赛上，成成荣成为第一位在该项赛事中获得个人奖牌的韩国女性——而且她获得的是金牌。

她在女子接力赛中再添一枚金牌，帮助韩国女子现代五项运动树立了新的标杆。她的一系列优异成绩最终使她登上了世界排名第一的宝座。

在 2024 年巴黎奥运会上，成在激光跑项目中获得第三名，夺得铜牌，成为第一位在现代五项奥运会上获得奖牌的亚洲女性。

继这一成就之后，她又获得了另一项重大荣誉，被国际现代五项联盟评为年度最佳女运动员。

然而，她的藏书中却缺少一部重要的作品——《亚运会》。

韩国女子体操运动员曾多次与个人冠军失之交臂。杨秀珍在2014年仁川亚运会上获得银牌，金世熙在2018年雅加达-巨港亚运会上获得亚军，金善宇在杭州亚运会上又获得一枚银牌。

成来到日本后决心要终结这一连串的连败。

但她面临着一个新的难题：这项运动本身已经发生了变化。

杭州奥运会后，马术项目被障碍赛取代。对成洁而言，这一变化意义尤为重大。杭州奥运会的失利让她倍感失望，但她努力将马术打造成自己的强项，甚至在巴黎奥运会上取得了马术满分。

现在，她不得不重新开始适应。

转型并非一蹴而就。在2025年4月的一场世界杯比赛中，成在障碍赛项目中出现失误，未能晋级决赛。但她迅速调整状态，仅仅一个月后就在另一场世界杯比赛中获得亚军。

她对这门新学科的信心与日俱增。

在爱知-名古屋运动会上，成在障碍赛项目中创造了个人最佳成绩，突破了29秒大关。随后，她又在击剑、游泳和激光跑等其他项目中保持冷静，最终以1492分获得第一名。

这一结果标志着他职业生涯中又一个“第一”，而他的职业生涯也越来越以“第一”为标志。

成成龙成为首位赢得亚运会现代五项个人冠军的韩国女性，此前她已获得世界锦标赛冠军和奥运会铜牌。

决赛结束后，成表示她很高兴自己在半决赛和决赛中都没有出现不必要的失误。

她还表示，自巴黎奥运会以来，她作为一名竞争者已经发生了改变，学会了控制自己的紧张情绪，享受比赛氛围，而不是被比赛氛围所压倒。

展望未来，这种沉着冷静可能会对她至关重要。

成秀玲此前已谈及她的奥运抱负。在巴黎奥运会获得铜牌后，她染了一头黄发，并表示希望在下一届奥运会上将铜牌换成金牌。

目前，她已为自己非凡的履历再添一笔。

从杭州站的那匹停下脚步的马，到爱知-名古屋站她克服的重重障碍，成的职业生涯就是在她所处的运动环境发生变化时不断适应的。

世界冠军。奥运会奖牌获得者。亚运会冠军。

年仅 23 岁的成胜民已经克服了现代五项运动中几乎所有重大障碍。