Lee Geon-hyeok sweeps rapid-fire pistol gold, first Korean double in 12 years

Lee Geon-hyeok, 27, proved himself the face of South Korean rapid-fire pistol shooting by claiming two gold medals in a single day at the Asian Games.

Lee won the men's 25m rapid-fire pistol individual final Thursday at the Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Range in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, edging China's Su Lianboban after a tense battle that went to a second shootoff. Lee finished with 32 points, including a combined shootoff score of 9, to take the title.

Lee had already secured a team gold earlier in the day, making him a double gold medalist at the Games. It is the first time South Korea swept both the individual and team titles in rapid-fire pistol at the Asian Games since Kim Jun-hong did so at the 2014 Incheon Games — 12 years ago.

In the rapid-fire pistol final, a shot scoring 9.7 or above counts as a hit and earns one point; anything below scores zero. Competitors fire five shots within four seconds in each series. After three series, the seventh- and eighth-place athletes are eliminated, and from that point on, the lowest-scoring shooter exits after each subsequent series.

Lee led after three series with 13 points, while his compatriot Yoon Seo-young managed only one point in the fourth series to finish sixth. Lee then hit all five shots in the fifth series, keeping pace with Su in the race for the top spot. He led 25-23 after six series and held a one-point advantage of 28-27 after seven. Ghulam Mustafa Bashir of Pakistan took the bronze medal with 22 points.

In the final eighth series, Su hit all five shots while Lee connected on four, leaving the two tied at 32-32. The first shootoff also ended level, with both athletes hitting four shots apiece. In the second shootoff, however, Lee hit all five while Su managed only two, sealing the gold medal for South Korea.

"I felt the happiest and performed my best when I let go of my desire for results and simply enjoyed the act of shooting itself," Lee said, reflecting on his performance. At critical moments, he said he cleared his mind by drawing on what he called "근자감" — baseless confidence — pushing aside distractions and focusing on positive visualization.

Lee's wife is Kim Ye-ji, who won a silver medal in the women's 10m air pistol event at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Long known to some as "Kim Ye-ji's husband," Lee carved out his own identity at these Asian Games by claiming two gold medals under his own name.

South Korea's shooting team closed out the Games with two additional gold medals in rapid-fire pistol — the final event on the schedule — finishing with three gold, five silver and four bronze medals.