Woo Sang-hyeok (26, Armed Forces Athletic Unit), the leader of the Korean high jump, has set a milestone that will shine in the history of Korean athletics.
Woo Sang-hyeok became the only player among 12 athletes to jump 2m34 to the top of the men's high jump final at the 2022 World Indoor Athletics Championships held at Stark Arena in Belgrade, Serbia.
Woo Sang-hyeok, who secured the gold medal, challenged the 2m37, which is higher than the Korean record (2m36) he held, and when he touched the bar in the 1st and 2nd period, he gave up his 3rd challenge.
Although he failed to achieve his new Korean record, Woo Sang-hyeok enjoyed the joy of 'to become world champion' as he received applause from the audience who visited Stark Arena.
Woo Sang-hyeok, a 'soldier', saluted with a serious face when introducing the player, and immediately shouted "Let's go" with a characteristic bright expression.
And he gleefully crossed the bar.
Among the 12 participants, Woo Sang-hyeok was the only one to skip the 2m15 and passed the 2m20, 2m24, and 2m28 in the first round.
There were only two players, Sang-hyeok Woo and Loik Gasch (Switzerland), who did not fail even once and reached 2m28.
Woo Sang-hyuk met his first crisis by touching the bar in the 2m31 1st and 2nd rounds.
However, he overcame the pressure in the third period and jumped 2m31.
Woo Sang-hyuk folded his arms and held a ceremony looking at the stopped bar.
Woo Sang-hyeok, who raised his momentum again, roared after exceeding the 2m34 mark in the first period.
Gash, Jean Marco Tamberry (Italy), Haemisi Kerr (Australia), and Chiago Mura (Brazil), who challenged the 2m34, failed to exceed 2m34 in all three times, so Woo Sang-hyuk's victory was confirmed.
Tamberry, who tied for first place at the Tokyo Olympics, also finished third with 2m31 on that day and was defeated by Woo Sang-hyeok.
Meanwhile, the World Indoor Athletics Championships did not get much attention from Korean fans.
It was the first time in 10 years that a Korean athlete participated in the World Indoor Athletics Championships after Lee Yeon-kyung (women's 60m hurdles) competed in Istanbul, Turkey in 2012.
The highest ranking for a Korean athlete at the previous World Indoor Athletics Championships was fifth place achieved by Sohn Ju-ju in the men's 400m at the 1995 Barcelona Games.
Woo Sang-hyeok, who went to Europe with Do-kyun Kim, coach of the Korean national track and field team for vertical jump last December, trained with the goal of winning the Belgrade World Indoor Athletics Championships.
He jumped 2m36 in Justo Peche, Czech Republic, on February 6, breaking the Korean record (2m35) set at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games last year, and won the indoor track and field competition in Banska Vistrica, Slovakia, by overtaking 2m35 on February 16th.
Woo Sang-hyeok, who entered the World Indoor Athletics Championships in 2022 as the only 'World Ranking No. 1' running over 2m35, opened up his era by climbing to the top on the main stage.