‘Stop the Hangzhou disaster!
The South Korean men’s basketball team arrived in Hangzhou 온라인카지노 on Wednesday for the final round. The men’s basketball team, led by head coach Chu Il-seung, will open the tournament against Indonesia on Nov. 26 before facing Qatar (Nov. 28) and Japan (Nov. 30) in Group D of the tournament.
The goal is clear. Recapture the crown nine years after the 2014 Incheon Games. South Korea won bronze in Jakarta-Palembang in 2018.
The odds are stacked against them. Chu Il-seung-ho has faced all sorts of variables in his preparation for the tournament. Moon Sung-gon (KT) and Song Kyo-chang (Commerce) dropped out with ankle and knee injuries, respectively. Yang Hong-seok (LG) and Byun Jun-hyung (Commerce) were brought in as replacements. Coach Chu said, “There were a lot of bumps in the road during the preparation process, such as player substitutions, but the players worked hard under difficult circumstances. They don’t have many international opportunities, so we will do our best to achieve good results at the Asian Games.”
There are also concerns about the deterioration of international competition. Chu was initially scheduled to play in the FIBA 2024 Paris Olympics pre-qualifying tournament in Syria on August 12. However, due to the country’s travel ban, he was unable to compete. The plan had gone awry. Chu Il-seung-ho was forced into a series of practice matches with the likes of Sangmu, Seoul SK, and Daegu KOGAS. Not exactly perfect sparring partners. Most of their key players had joined the national team.
“After the two-game Korea-Japan series in July, we tried to improve our game sense by training in Japan. Luckily, there were some foreign players in Japan, so we were able to complement them.” South Korea will face Japan in the group stage. “We have a good record in the last friendly (1-1), so we are confident. I don’t think we need to worry. We know that Japan and China are going through some difficulties and won’t be at full strength. However, I think the matches against the Middle Eastern countries will be the key (to winning) as they are expected to have naturalized players. The Philippines will also be a tough opponent.”
The Asian Games is never an easy stage, especially with the recent “catastrophic” eliminations in some events. “The goal is always to come out on top in any competition. I’m determined to win a gold medal at this Games as well.”