"I feel strongly that this will be my last Asian Games, so I want it badly. I want to be a father my two-year-old daughter can be proud of. My dream is to hang a gold medal around my neck and take a family photo with my wife and daughter that we will remember for the rest of our lives."
Lee Seung-hyun, 34, the captain of South Korea's men's national basketball team, spoke with Seoul Economic Daily at Hyundai Mobis' (012330) practice gym in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, recently. His eyes were full of determination. Lee, who first wore the national team jersey in 2015, is now the team's captain heading into the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
The team won bronze at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games but finished seventh at the 2023 Hangzhou Games, its worst result ever, and Lee experienced that firsthand. His resolve for this tournament is different as a result. "Ever since I was first called up to the national team, I have carried the heavy responsibility of showing the public something we need not be ashamed of," Lee said. "This time, in Japan, I really want to play a game that fans will remember."
The road to gold does not look smooth. Since Nikolajs Mazurs took over as the team's first foreign head coach, the national team has gone 4-6. In exhibition games against Japan last month, the team lost by 20 and 29 points. But the team has bounced back, winning three straight, including a World Cup Asian qualifier against Saudi Arabia and two exhibition games against the Philippines.
"The biggest strength of this national team is unquestionably the height and workload of our forwards. We have many tall players such as Lee Hyun-jung, Yeo Jun-seok and Choi Jun-yong, and we do not fall short at all compared with Asia's powerhouses," Lee said. "Players around two meters tall can shoot three-pointers, run and even push the ball in transition, so I believe we can post a strong result at this tournament."
The idea of a 12-year title cycle adds to expectations for gold. South Korea won the title at the 2002 Busan Games and captured Asian Games gold again 12 years later at the 2014 Incheon Games. Twelve years on from that, the team is again trying to reclaim the top spot in Asia this year. "The 12-year cycle is a bit of a burden, but I do not know whether I will be able to stand on this stage four years from now, so personally I think this is my last chance to win a gold medal," Lee said.
Lee has volunteered to be the team's "lubricant," taking on the unglamorous work so that young aces such as Lee Hyun-jung, Yeo Jun-seok and Lee Jung-hyun — the team's "big three" on offense — can play freely on the court. "I have never made the kind of flashy plays that fans love in my basketball career, but I am confident in doing the dirty work and helping my teammates so the team can win," he said. "They are young players, but no one is more serious about basketball than they are. I will do my best on the court to set the stage so that the sweat and hard work they have put in can bear fruit."
South Korea, ranked 57th by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), opens Group A play against Saudi Arabia, ranked 64th, on the 10th, then faces Indonesia, ranked 92nd, on the 11th and host Japan, ranked 22nd, on the 13th. "There is not a single team we can take lightly," Lee said. "From the moment the national team first gathered, we promised each other that we would win the gold medal this time. As captain, I will run harder than anyone on the court so that the players' efforts lead to a good result."
