Park Jin-ho, the first disabled AG gold challenger in shooting... “I will climb the podium with my juniors.”

(Nagoya = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Dong-han and joint reporters = Park Jin-ho (49, Gangneung City Hall), the representative figure of Korean disabled shooting, will challenge for the first gold medal of the Korean team at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games.

Jin-ho Park will participate in the men's R1 10m air rifle competition held at the Aichi Prefecture General Shooting Range in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan on the 19th.

Although he is considered a candidate for the Korean team's first gold medal, he has put down the burden of winning a medal.

My biggest wish is to stand on the podium with juniors Lee Jang-ho (Cheongju City Hall) and Kim Su-wan (Gyeonggi Province Sports Association for the Disabled) who are competing in the same event.

Jin-ho Park said in an interview on the 18th, "I try not to think that I have to win the gold medal," and "It would be best for me and my juniors to come in first, second, and third place together."

Jin-ho Park thought about the performance of the Korean national team and his juniors more than his own performance. He said he wanted to help secure more qualifications for the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympic Games.

He said, "Our country has not yet secured a large number of participation quotas. I hope our juniors will do better, and if the three of us raise the national flag together, the quota will naturally increase further."

This means going beyond individual medals and helping the next generation of Korean shooters stand on a bigger stage.

Jin-ho Park had a non-stop schedule this year. Since April, the physical burden has increased as domestic competitions, national team selection competitions, and world championships have been held one after another.

At the World Para Shooting Championships held in Changwon last month, he won the men's 50m rifle 3-position final by shooting 354.7 points, setting a world record. This was achieved after reducing the amount of training and receiving treatment due to the poor condition of the left shoulder at the time.

Jin-ho Park explained, "There were so many competitions this year. I had to compete in 10 competitions since April, so it was physically difficult. This time, I focused on improving my condition."

He then calmly said, "It's a 24-shot final, but in the end, each shot adds up to 24 shots. The result is determined by how much you focus on each shot. I plan to do my best."

Jin-ho Park won three gold medals at the 2014 Incheon Asian Para Games, and a silver and bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.

At the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, he won two gold medals, winning the men's 10m air rifle event and the 50m rifle 3-position event. At the World Championships last month, he set a world record and won three gold medals, proving his top-level skills.

I also responded to the interview on this day with the intention of breaking the jinx that ‘if you are interviewed before a game, your performance will not be good.’

Jin-ho Park laughed and said, “I ruined the game in almost all of the competitions I had pre-interviews for,” and then said, “Isn’t it supposed to be a jinx? I’ll try to break it this time.”