PARIS — South Korean archer Kim Woo-jin triumphed in the men's individual archery final on Sunday, securing his third gold medal at the Paris Olympics and completing South Korea's sweep of all archery gold medals available. Kim's victory over American archer Brady Ellison in a nail-biting shoot-off at Invalides marks a historic achievement for him and his country.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim Woo-jin's win against Brady Ellison, the 2016 Olympic individual bronze medalist, was decided in a dramatic shoot-off after both competitors scored perfectly in the final set of the match. This victory not only granted Kim his third gold of the games but also established him as the most decorated South Korean Olympian in history, surpassing other athletes with a total of five Olympic gold medals. Kim's previous victories in Paris included golds in the men's team and mixed team events.
The final showdown between Kim and Ellison was the culmination of an intense competition, with Kim making a significant comeback after Ellison initially took the lead. The match progressed to a shoot-off after both archers were tied, each displaying exceptional skill by scoring 30 points in the last set. Kim's arrow, measuring 55.8 millimeters from the center, narrowly outperformed Ellison's 60.7 millimeters, clinching the gold for South Korea.
South Korea's dominance in archery was further highlighted by their complete gold medal sweep in the sport, a repeat of their 2016 performance, though the mixed team event was not part of the Olympics until Tokyo 2021. Earlier in the day, South Korean archer Lee Woo-seok secured the bronze, defeating Florian Unruh of Germany, after losing to Kim in the semifinals.
Kim's achievement places him alongside Lim Si-hyeon as South Korea's second triple gold medalist at the ongoing Olympics, making them the only nation so far to have two athletes win three golds each in Paris.