[Nagoya AG] Korea Wins First Gold Medal in Esports Fighting Games at Asian Games

The Korean national team won its first gold medal in the esports fighting game category at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games (AG) by defeating Japan.

The Korean national team players Yeon Jegil (Street Fighter 6), Bae Jaemin (Tekken 8), and Lee Kwangno (The King of Fighters XV) won the finals of the Asian Games esports fighting game category held on the 26th at Aichi Sky Expo in Japan with a set score of 5-2 against Japan. Yonhap News

The Korean national team players Yeon Jegil (Street Fighter 6), Bae Jaemin (Tekken 8), and Lee Kwangno (The King of Fighters XV) claimed victory over Japan with a set score of 5-2 in the finals of the Asian Games esports fighting game category held on the 26th at Aichi Sky Expo in Japan.

The esports fighting game category was contested by grouping three games—Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, and The King of Fighters XV—where the competitors switched to a different game for each set. Korea had a close match in the first set, which was played with Street Fighter 6, but conceded the win to Japan. However, in the second set with The King of Fighters XV, Lee Kwangno neutralized the opponent with a solid performance, evening the score.

The third set, played with Tekken 8, saw Bae Jaemin facing his rival Nakayama Daichi, whom he had met multiple times in international tournaments. Nakayama narrowly defeated Bae, putting Japan ahead 2-1 in sets. The fourth set returned to The King of Fighters XV, where Korea was considered to have the upper hand. Lee Kwangno responded decisively to Sawada Akihito’s aggressive play, tying the set score at 2-2.

In the first game of the fifth set, played with Tekken 8, Bae Jaemin landed consecutive hits with precision to secure the win and gain momentum. His rival Nakayama responded with a victory in game 2, but Bae Jaemin’s focus shone through in game 3, turning the match around to put Korea ahead 3-2 in sets. The sixth set, played with Street Fighter 6, saw Yeon Jegil’s Viper character dominate Higuchi Kojiro’s Guile, not taking a single hit in round 2 and finishing game 1 with a perfect KO. Even in game 2, Yeon stayed calm in a disadvantageous situation, defending against all of Higuchi's attacks and landing a critical special move to secure another win, widening the set score to 4-2 for Korea.

The seventh set featured Tekken 8 again. Bae Jaemin defeated Nakayama by a razor-thin margin in game 1 and then dominated the opponent in game 2, securing the gold medal and concluding this year’s Asian Games campaign on a high note.

As of today, Korea has won 1 gold, 1 silver, and 1 bronze medal in esports at the Games. Kim Youngchan earned bronze on the 23rd by finishing third in the Gran Turismo 7 event, while Kang Dongshin claimed the silver medal in the Puyo Puyo Champions category on the same day. Previously, in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, which featured Street Fighter V as a single event, Kim Gwanwoo took the gold medal in the finals.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.