Kim Woo-jin (archer)

Kim Woo-jin
Personal information
Native name김우진
National team South Korea
Born (1992-06-20) June 20, 1992
Okcheon, North Chungcheong, South Korea
EducationJuseong University, Chungbuk Physical Education High School, Iwon Middle School, Iwon Elementary School
Height5 ft 11 in (180 cm)[1]
Weight198 lb (90 kg)[1]
Sport
SportArchery
ClubCheongju City
Medal record
Men's recurve archery
Representing  South Korea
Olympic Games
2016 Rio de Janeiro Team
2020 Tokyo Team
2024 Paris Individual
2024 Paris Team
2024 Paris Mixed team
World Championships
2011 Torino Individual
2011 Torino Team
2015 Copenhagen Individual
2015 Copenhagen Team
2021 Yankton Individual
2021 Yankton Team
2021 Yankton Mixed team
2023 Berlin Team
2023 Berlin Mixed team
2017 Mexico City Team
2019 's-Hertogenbosch Team
World Cup Final
2012 Tokyo Individual
2015 Mexico City Mixed team
2017 Rome Individual
2017 Rome Mixed team
2018 Samsun Individual
2018 Samsun Mixed team
2019 Moscow Mixed team
2022 Tlaxcala Individual
2024 Tlaxcala Individual
2015 Mexico City Individual
Asian Games
2010 Guangzhou Individual
2010 Guangzhou Team
2018 Jakarta Individual
2018 Jakarta Team
Asian Championships
2019 Bangkok Team
2019 Bangkok Mixed team
2019 Bangkok Individual
2023 Bangkok Individual
2023 Bangkok Team
Summer Universiade
2015 Gwangju Team
2017 Taipei Team
2011 Shenzhen Individual
2015 Gwangju Individual
2017 Taipei Individual
Korean name
Hangul
김우진
Revised RomanizationGim U-jin
McCune–ReischauerKim U-jin

Kim Woo-jin (Korean김우진; Korean pronunciation: [ki.mu.dʑin] or [kim] [u.dʑin]; born June 20, 1992) is a South Korean archer specializing in recurve archery. He first held the world number one ranking in 2011.[2] At the 2016 Summer Olympics, he set a world record in men's individual recurve archery as well as won the gold medal as a member of the South Korean men's archery team. During the 2024 Summer Olympics, he earned an Olympic gold medal in the men's individual event after a tiebreaker with American archer Brady Ellison. This victory marked Kim's fifth gold medal overall and his third consecutive Olympics in which he won a gold medal. He is also a three-time world champion in the men's individual recurve event at the World Archery Championships.[3]

His record of five Olympic gold medals is the most won by any archer in the world, surpassing the four won by Kim Soo-nyung.[4] It also makes him the most awarded Korean Olympian of all time in any sport.[4]

He is right-handed, and uses 30-inch (76 cm) arrows and a draw weight of 46 pounds (21 kg).[2]

Career

Kim was part of the 2011 World Archery Championships gold medal-winning men's team and won the individual gold medal at the 2011 World Archery Championships and the 2012 FITA Archery World Cup. Despite this, he was not selected for the 2012 Korean Olympic team.[5]

In 2015, Kim was again selected for the Korean national team and became the first man since 1985 to win the World Archery Championships twice.[6]

During the 2016 Summer Olympics, Kim set a world record during the individual men's qualifying round with a score of 700 out of a possible 720 (held under World Archery Federation rules at a distance of 70 meters).[7] The previous record of 699 was set by Im Dong-hyun (also of South Korea) at the 2012 Olympics,[7] and the record would stand until surpassed by Brady Ellison with a score of 702 at the 2019 World Archery Championships.[8] However, in a major upset, Kim lost 2–6 in the second round in the individual category to Indonesia's Riau Ega Agatha.[9] He was one of the three members of the South Korean men's team who won the Olympic gold medal in the team competition.[10]

During the 2024 Summer Olympics, he earned an Olympic gold medal in the men's individual event after a tiebreaker with American archer Brady Ellison. This victory marked Kim's fifth gold medal overall and his third consecutive Olympics in which he won a gold medal. In addition, Kim secured a gold medal in the men's team archery event, making him one of only two athletes, along with Kim Soo-nyung, to achieve three consecutive team gold medals in archery at the Olympics. This made him South Korea's most successful Olympic athlete.[4][11][12] His gold completed South Korea's clean sweep of archery at that Olympics.[13]

Personal life

As of August 2021, Kim was planning to marry his girlfriend in December 2021.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Kim Woo-Jin". archivepyc.nbcolympics.com. NBCUniversal. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Kim Woojin". World Archery. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  3. ^ Lloyd, Owen (September 26, 2021). "South Koreans Kim and Jang triumph in recurve finals at World Archery Championships". InsideTheGames.biz. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c Parker, Joe (August 4, 2024). "Kim Woojin becomes greatest archery Olympian of all time with five gold medals". World Archery. Retrieved August 4, 2024.
  5. ^ Liew, Jonathan (July 27, 2012). "London 2012 Olympics: South Korean archers secure first two world records of London 2012". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  6. ^ "World Archery President Praises 'Historic' and 'Exciting' World Championships (World Archery press release)". Around the Rings. August 6, 2015. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  7. ^ a b "Rio 2016: South Korean archer Kim Woo-jin sets first world record of Games". BBC Sport. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  8. ^ "Brady Ellison". World Archery. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  9. ^ Wells, Chris. "#1 Seed Kim Suffers Shock 2nd-Round Defeat in Rio". World Archery. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  10. ^ "Rio Olympics 2016: South Korea beat USA to win archery gold". BBC Sport. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  11. ^ "Korea clinch every archery gold as Kim Woo-jin wins high-drama shoot-off". Korea JoongAng Daily. August 4, 2024. Retrieved August 4, 2024.
  12. ^ Yoo, Jee-ho (August 4, 2024). "(LEAD) (Olympics) With clutch final shot, veteran archer makes history". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved August 4, 2024.
  13. ^ "Kim Woo-jin completes South Korean archery title sweep with individual men's gold". The Straits Times. August 4, 2024. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved August 4, 2024.
  14. ^ Seo Yu-na (August 18, 2021). "양궁 김우진 "올해 12월 결혼, '라디오스타' 출연 걱정돼" [Archery Kim Woo-jin "I'm worried about getting married in December this year and appearing on 'Radio Star']. Newsen (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved August 18, 2021.