Now that he got a taste of breaking a South Korean record Tuesday, freestyle swimmer Kim Woo-min said he wants to keep setting more records.
Kim broke an 11-year-old national record in the men's 800-meter freestyle Tuesday, touching the pad in 7:47.69 in the heats at the World Aquatics Championships in Japan. The previous record had been 7:49.93, set by Park Tae-hwan at the 2012 London Olympics.
Though Kim didn't make it out of the heats, finishing 14th, with only the top eight moving on to the final, it shouldn't take any shine off his national record.
Park is widely considered the greatest South Korean swimmer of all time. He won two world titles in the 400m freestyle, in 2007 and 2011, along with an Olympic gold in 2008 and a silver in 2012 in the same event.
Though the 800m wasn't Park's main event, any time a South Korean swimmer can erase his name from the record books is a big deal.
"I am really happy to have my first national record," Kim said after the race at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka. "This gives me motivation to keep breaking more records. I will try to build on this momentum and go after records in the 400m and 1,500m freestyle too."
As was the case for Park, Kim's main event is the 400m freestyle. Park still owns the South Korean record in that event with a time of 3:41.53, set at the 2010 Asian Games.
Kim took a major step toward that mark here Sunday, when he finished a career-high fifth in the 400m final, with his new personal best time of 3:43.92.
Kim arrived in Fukuoka with a personal record of 3:45.59, set during the national team trials in March. He improved that to 3:44.52 in the heats earlier Sunday and then shaved off even more time just hours later in the final.
"I think I was able to race in the 800m with a lot of confidence because I did so well in the 400m," Kim said. "If I can improve my endurance a bit more, I should be able to fight for a spot in the world championships final in the 800m too."
Kim said there is no secret to his success other than good, honest work.
"I've been taking every training session seriously and making sure I put in hard work every time," he said. "And I've been having a lot of fun working with my teammates. That made it easier for me to prepare for this competition."
Kim was the only Asian in the 400m final here and finished as the top Asian in the 800m heats. That established Kim as a strong medal contender for this year's Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, beginning in September.
"I will just put my head down and keep working hard for the Asian Games," Kim said. "I believe that with hard work and good preparation, good results will naturally follow."
Source: Yonhap News Agency