swimmers-worlds
 |
| ▲ Hwang Sun-woo of South Korea leaves the pool after competing in the heats for the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 24, 2023. (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲ Hwang Sun-woo of South Korea checks his time after competing in the heats for the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 24, 2023. (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲ Hwang Sun-woo of South Korea competes in the heats for the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 24, 2023. (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲ Lee Ho-joon of South Korea prepares for the start in the heats for the men's 200-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan, on July 24, 2023. (Yonhap) |
swimmers-worlds
Hwang Sun-woo vows not to mess around after close call in heats at worlds
By Yoo Jee-ho
FUKUOKA, Japan, July 24 (Yonhap) -- Entering the heats for the men's 200-meter freestyle at the world championships, South Korean swimming star Hwang Sun-woo figured he would pace himself a bit for the semifinals and the seemingly inevitable final later.
The 20-year-old ended up with more than he'd bargained for, though.
Hwang, the reigning world silver medalist in the 200m freestyle, almost didn't even get to the semifinals Monday in Fukuoka. He finished in a three-way tie for 13th in the heats with a time of 1:46.69, with the top 16 moving on to the semifinals for Monday evening. Hwang was only 0.01 second faster than the last qualifier, Antonio Djakovic of Switzerland. Lithuania's Danas Rapsys finished 17th in 1:46.87.
"Obviously, I was planning to pace myself this morning, but I think I slowed down too much in the latter part of the race," said Hwang, who arrived in Fukuoka with the world's fastest 200m freestyle time in 2023 at 1:44.61. "My body felt great this morning. It's just that I messed up my pace, and it was a bit of a close call at the end."
Hwang said he is not going to mess around in the semifinals.
"I'll have to work really hard to reach the final now," Hwang said. "I won't be pacing myself much."
Luke Hobson of the United States led all qualifiers with 1:45.69. David Popovici of Romania, the reigning world champion, finished third in 1:45.86.
"I wanted to get into the early 1:46 or the late 1:45 range, but I ended up with a poor time," Hwang said. "I will try not to make the same mistake in the semifinals."
Hwang will at least have some welcome company in the semifinals. He raced alongside teammate Lee Ho-joon in the heats, and Lee, far less accomplished than Hwang, finished fifth in the heats in 1:46.21.
"I think the fact that two South Korean swimmers reached the semifinals together shows how much Korean swimming has improved," Hwang said. "It will be great to have Ho-joon with me in the semifinals."
Lee, who had raced in the 4x100m freestyle relay Sunday night, said he was able to correct some mistakes from the previous day.
"I was pretty efficient with my race today," Lee said. "In the heats, it's not always easy to give your 100 percent and put on an efficient race, but I was able to do that and post a pretty good time."
Lee's personal best in the 200m freestyle is 1:45.70, and he said if he can improve on that mark, he may have a chance to crack the final.
"I am still lagging behind a lot of the swimmers here," said the 22-year-old. "I have a long ways to go, and I want to learn as much from them as I can."
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
