At just 14, Korean compound archer Kang Yeonseo has already made her mark on the international stage, becoming the youngest Korean archer ever selected for the senior squad and winning two bronze medals at the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026.
“As it was my first season, everything seemed to go by so quickly, but it was also quite challenging,” she said. “This year was only my second time competing in the national team trials, so I haven’t really thought about the Olympics yet.”
When you think of great Korean archery in the modern era, your mind turns to Oh Jin Hyek, Park Sung-Hyun, Ki Bo Bae, Kim Woojin and countless more.
The stars Korea has produced in the 21st century represent a roll-call of talent unseen in any other country in recurve archery.
Although it is probably a combination of a numbers game, given the number of young people in Korea who take up the sport, and a culture of shooting embedded in society for a long time, each of these archers was once as green on the international stage as any archer from any country.
In the case of Jin-Hyek, Sung-Hyun and Woojin, they were green in life as well as in competing overseas, with all three Olympic champions aged 18 when they made their first senior Korean squads.
Tokyo 2020 triple gold medallist An San was even younger, at 17, when she debuted internationally at the Taipei 2018 Asia Cup, winning silver in her first outing overseas.
There is one archer this year, however, who broke into Korea’s A-team and is similar to these greats, but different.
A teenager, but with a different bow.
“I didn’t notice any major differences,” Yeonseo said when asked about the biggest differences between World Cups and national competitions in Korea. “What stood out to me was getting to know athletes from other countries and becoming friends with them as I competed in more international events.
“It also felt surreal to see my name on the entry lists at international events. I still find it amazing every time.”
