North Korea to send 9 wrestlers to 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games

North Korea will send nine wrestlers to the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, with entries in men’s Greco-Roman, men’s freestyle and women’s freestyle. The lineup includes world No. 1 Han Chong-song and several medal contenders. The country is also planning a delegation of roughly 100 athletes, about 40 percent smaller than at the previous Asian Games, while increasing its wrestling roster by one athlete.

North Korea’s wrestling team includes two men’s Greco-Roman wrestlers, two men’s freestyle wrestlers and five women’s freestyle wrestlers.

Han Chong-song will compete in the men’s 57-kilogram freestyle class and is ranked No. 1 in the world.

North Korea won seven medals, including one gold, at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games and seven medals again at last year’s world championships.

The country plans to send about 100 athletes to this year’s Asian Games, a reduction of about 40 percent from the previous edition, even as its wrestling contingent rises by one athlete.

Published Sep 5, 2026 1:05 pm KST

Updated Sep 5, 2026 4:52 pm KST

North Korean wrestler Han Chong-song, center, will compete in the men's 57 kg class Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. Captured from United World Wrestling's website

North Korea will send nine athletes to compete in wrestling at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

According to the United World Wrestling (UWW) on Thursday, North Korea has entered two wrestlers in men's Greco-Roman wrestling — Ryu Yu-chol in the 60-kilogram class, ranked No. 51 in the world, and Son Man-kwang in the 67kg class, ranked No. 49.

In men's freestyle, world No. 1 Han Chong-song will compete in the 57kg class, while Kim Kwang-jin, ranked No. 14, will compete in the 65kg class.

North Korea's women's freestyle lineup includes Kim Son-hyang in the 50kg class, ranked No. 19; Choe Hyo-gyong in the 53kg class, ranked No. 7; Son Il-sim in the 57kg class, ranked No. 3; Kim Ok-ju in the 62kg class, ranked No. 3; and Pak Sol-gum in the 68kg class, ranked No. 10.

North Korea, which has emerged as a wrestling powerhouse since making rapid strides on the international stage in the late 2010s, won seven medals — one gold, three silver and three bronze — at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. At last year's world championships, the country again claimed seven medals, including three golds, two silvers and two bronzes.

Although North Korea plans to send a delegation of roughly 100 athletes to this year's Asian Games, a reduction of about 40 percent from the previous edition, it has increased its wrestling contingent by one athlete. The team is considered capable of winning three or more gold medals.

Han is considered one of North Korea's strongest gold medal contenders. Last year, he was named UWW's Asian Freestyle Wrestler of the Year, drawing international attention for his performances.

Han has demonstrated his dominance by defeating Bekzat Almaz Uulu of Kyrgyzstan, the world's No. 3-ranked wrestler in the weight class, in both the final of the world championships and the semifinal of the Asian championships.

Veteran Kim Son-hyang, who won a silver medal at the 2026 Asian Championships, is also expected to contend for gold. She is set for a fierce battle with Yui Susaki of Japan, who won gold at the same championships.

Choe Hyo-gyong is another medal contender. She won bronze at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2025 World Championships. She also captured gold at the 2025 Asian Championships.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.

朝鲜将派出九名摔跤运动员参加2026年爱知-名古屋亚运会，参赛项目包括男子古典式摔跤、男子自由式摔跤和女子自由式摔跤。阵容中包括世界排名第一的韩钟松以及多位奖牌有力争夺者。朝鲜计划派出约100名运动员的代表团参赛，人数比上届亚运会减少了约40%，但摔跤项目的参赛人数增加了一名。

朝鲜摔跤队包括两名男子古典式摔跤运动员、两名男子自由式摔跤运动员和五名女子自由式摔跤运动员。

韩钟松将参加男子57公斤级自由式摔跤比赛，目前世界排名第一。

朝鲜在 2022 年杭州亚运会上获得 7 枚奖牌，其中包括 1 枚金牌；在去年的世界锦标赛上，朝鲜再次获得 7 枚奖牌。

该国计划派出约 100 名运动员参加今年的亚运会，比上届减少了约 40%，尽管其摔跤队人数增加了一名运动员。

发布于2026年9月5日下午1:05（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年9月5日下午4:52（韩国标准时间）

图为朝鲜摔跤运动员韩钟松（中），他将参加2026年爱知-名古屋亚运会男子57公斤级古典式摔跤比赛。图片来自世界摔跤联合会官网。

朝鲜将派出九名运动员参加2026年爱知-名古屋亚运会摔跤比赛。

据世界摔跤联合会（UWW）周四发布的消息，朝鲜派出两名摔跤运动员参加男子古典式摔跤比赛——分别是世界排名第51位的60公斤级选手柳有哲和世界排名第49位的67公斤级选手孙万光。

在男子自由式摔跤比赛中，世界排名第一的韩钟松将参加57公斤级比赛，而排名第14位的金光镇将参加65公斤级比赛。

朝鲜女子自由式摔跤队阵容包括：50公斤级选手金​​善香（排名第19）；53公斤级选手崔孝京（排名第7）；57公斤级选手孙日心（排名第3）；62公斤级选手金​​玉珠（排名第3）；以及68公斤级选手朴率根（排名第10）。

自2010年代末在国际赛场上迅速崛起以来，朝鲜已成为摔跤强国。在2022年杭州亚运会上，朝鲜共获得七枚奖牌——一金三银三铜。在去年的世界锦标赛上，朝鲜同样斩获七枚奖牌，其中包括三金两银两铜。

尽管朝鲜计划派出约100名运动员参加本届亚运会，比上届减少了约40%，但其摔跤项目参赛人数增加了一名运动员。该队被认为有能力赢得三枚或更多金牌。

韩被认为是朝鲜最有希望夺得金牌的选手之一。去年，他被世界摔跤联合会（UWW）评为亚洲年度最佳自由式摔跤运动员，其出色表现引起了国际关注。

韩在世界摔跤锦标赛决赛和亚洲摔跤锦标赛半决赛中都击败了该级别世界排名第三的吉尔吉斯斯坦选手别克扎特·阿尔马兹·乌卢，展现了他的统治力。

曾在2026年亚洲锦标赛上获得银牌的老将金善香也被视为金牌的有力争夺者。她将与在同一届锦标赛上获得金牌的日本选手须崎由衣展开激烈角逐。

崔孝京是另一位奖牌有力争夺者。她曾在2022年杭州亚运会、2024年巴黎奥运会和2025年世界锦标赛上获得铜牌，并在2025年亚洲锦标赛上摘得金牌。

本文来自《韩国日报》（《韩国时报》的姊妹报），由人工智能生成系统翻译，并由《韩国时报》编辑。