football-Asian Games
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| ▲ In this file photo from Jan. 10, 2022, players of the South Korean men's under-23 national football team train at Gongcheonpo Training Center in Seogwipo, Jeju Island. (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ In this file photo from Jan. 10, 2022, Hwang Sun-hong, head coach of the South Korean men's under-23 national football team, speaks to reporters before a training session at Gongcheonpo Training Center in Seogwipo, Jeju Island. (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ This AFP photo taken May 6, 2022, shows a souvenir shop for the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. The Olympic Council of Asia announced on this day the competition has been postponed indefinitely due to COVID-19. (Yonhap) |
football-Asian Games
Asiad men's football coach undeterred by postponement
By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, May 6 (Yonhap) -- The head coach of the South Korean men's Asian Games football team said Friday the postponement of the continental competition will not affect his preparation in any way.
Hwang Sun-hong, who leads the men's under-23 football team, said he had been bracing for the announcement that arrived Friday afternoon: that the 19th Asian Games, scheduled to take place in Hangzhou, China, from Sept. 10 to 25 this year, have been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) said the new dates for the event will be determined in the near future.
In a statement released by the Korea Football Association (KFA), Hwang said he was still caught a bit off guard by the postponement.
"If the Asian Games are moved to 2023, I will work closely with the KFA to make sure the team is well prepared for the competition," Hwang said.
Lingering uncertainty surrounding the postponement puts many football players' Asian Games status in doubt.
Only players who are 23 years or younger can participate in the Asia Games men's football tournament, with the exception of a maximum three overage players per team. If the Hangzhou Asian Games hadn't been postponed, then players born on or after Jan. 1, 1999, would have been eligible.
It is not yet clear whether the OCA and Hangzhou will make the same exception that FIFA made for football teams at the Tokyo Summer Olympics, when that competition was pushed back by a year to 2021 because of the pandemic.
FIFA extended the age limit to 24 for Tokyo, allowing the group of players eligible for 2020 to retain their status for 2021.
The eligibility issue is a particularly sensitive one for South Korean footballers because of the unique situation with the country's mandatory military service.
Winning an Asian Games gold medal grants all South Korean male athletes exemptions from military duty. For football players in their early 20s with aspirations of moving to major European leagues or carving out a long domestic career, a two-year military service disruption could cost them millions in contracts or, short of such lucrative deals, stability and security.
One silver lining for Hwang's team from the news of the Asiad postponement is that the decision should help him avoid potential conflict with the senior men's national team.
South Korea will compete at the FIFA World Cup kicking off in Qatar in November, and will play about a dozen friendly matches in preparation. There are two FIFA international match windows prior to the World Cup: May 30-June 14 and Sept. 19-27.
The second window would have overlapped with the Asian Games. A few players in the U-23 age bracket are talented enough to merit consideration for the senior squad, coached by Paulo Bento. Some previous senior head coaches and U-23 head coaches have had their disagreements on how many U-23 players should be called up to the senior team. Bento himself had some issues with Hwang's predecessor, Kim Hak-bum, ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.
In April, Bento offered a compromise, where he should be free to pick anyone from the U-23 talent pool in June and then allow Hwang to keep his best players for the Asian Games in September.
The postponement means Hwang and Bento don't have to worry about which U-23 players should be made available for which team in September.
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