'If you don't return within 15 days, you'll be arrested': Basketball gold medalist Moon Jung-hyun's run-in with military authorities

Moon Jung-hyun, 25, a men's basketball national team player who won gold at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games and plays for Suwon KT Corp, has shared the story behind an awkward moment that led him to send a photo of his gold medal to the Military Manpower Administration.

A video titled "Moon Jung-hyun returns home in triumph after winning gold — 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games gold medal homecoming" was posted Tuesday on the official YouTube channel of Suwon KT Sonic Boom.

Moon appeared at Incheon International Airport biting his gold medal as he savored his victory.

On the ride back to Suwon, he reflected on the gold-medal moment and revealed that he had received an unexpected message from the Military Manpower Administration while still in Japan.

"My overseas travel permit had only been filed to cover the KT training camp period," Moon said. "Around the day of the final on Tuesday, the Military Manpower Administration contacted me saying, 'If you do not return within 15 days, you will be arrested.'"

"I was startled when I got the message and thought, 'Can this be right?'" he said. "They were reaching out by phone, email and KakaoTalk, so I thought, 'This won't do — it has to be a gold medal.'" The remark drew laughter.

When a club official told him to take a photo of the medal and send it over, Moon photographed the gold medal and sent it to the Military Manpower Administration official via KakaoTalk.

In the KakaoTalk exchange that was made public, the official wrote, "Are you returning on the 21st? Please make sure you're back by then." Moon replied, "I'll be back in Korea on the 21st. Thank you for your hard work."

Moon had originally been left off the final national team roster but joined the squad late as a replacement for Ahn Young-jun, who suffered a finger injury. After learning of his sudden call-up, he traveled alone from Nagano, where he had been on a training camp, to Nagoya by bullet train.

"I had heard people around me saying I might or might not get picked, but when I left for the training camp I told myself I would focus entirely on the team," Moon said. "When it came down to it and I actually heard the news about joining the national team, my mind was all over the place."

"I arrived the day before and did not get a single workout in. There was even heavy rain in Nagoya, so I could not train, and I played in a game the very next day," he said. "But the KT trainers had done such a great job getting my body in shape. They pushed me hard, but it really paid off. The national team also said I was in great physical condition, so I got a lot of playing time and caught the coach's eye — I was satisfied with how it went."

Meanwhile, Moon competed at the Games alongside his younger brother Moon Yu-hyun, 22, of Anyang Jeong Gwan Jang, and the two became the first brothers in history to win Asian Games gold medals together.

Moon said his parents were overjoyed by the brothers' gold medals. "After leaving the arena, I think I heard 'stay humble' about 200 times," he said. "I want to ride this momentum and win a championship with KT as well."

South Korea's men's basketball team claimed gold Sunday at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, defeating host nation Japan 67-57 in the final. It was the team's first Asian Games title in 12 years, since the 2014 Incheon Games.