Following their stellar performances at last month's 46th National Para Games, Jeju-affiliated athletes are now putting on the Taegeuk mark to challenge for the top of the podium in Asia.

According to the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Sports Council for the Disabled on the 7th, a total of eight delegates—including six Jeju-affiliated athletes and two coaches—will participate in the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games, which will be held for seven days from the 18th to the 24th across Aichi, Gifu, and Shizuoka prefectures in Japan.

The national team selection features multi-medalists from the recent National Para Games: swimmer Ko Jun-hyeok, track and field athletes Kang Byul and Kang Hyun-jung, badminton players Shin Kyung-hwan and Lee Dae-sung, and wheelchair basketball player Kim Dong-hyun, alongside badminton coach Jang Yoon-hyeok and track and field coach Hong Ja-hyun.

These athletes contributed significantly to Jeju's all-time best performance at the 46th National Para Games—held in Jeju for the first time last month—by combining for 11 gold medals and 4 silver medals.

Badminton player Shin Kyung-hwan (SL4) is aiming for a medal at his second consecutive Asian Para Games. A national representative at both the Tokyo and Paris Paralympics, this marks Shin's third appearance at the Asian Para Games. In this tournament, he will compete in the men's singles (SL4) and men's doubles (SL3-SL4-SU5).

In track and field, T37 athlete Kang Hyun-jung and F37 athlete Kang Byul are aiming for medals backed by their Korean record statuses. Kang Hyun-jung, who holds the Korean records for the men's 200m and 400m T37, swept both events with tournament record times at the first national team trials in March. He has also captured multi-medals for three consecutive years at the National Para Games, winning 3 gold medals in 2024 and 4 gold medals in each of 2025 and 2026. He will compete in the 400m final on the 21st and the 200m final on the 23rd.

Kang Byul, the Korean record holder in the women's discus throw and javelin throw F37, will compete in the discus throw on the 19th. Having narrowly missed a podium finish with a fourth-place result at the 2022 Hangzhou Games, she is making a renewed challenge for her first Asian Para Games medal.

Swimmer Ko Jun-hyeok (S6), who has harvested 8 gold medals at the National Para Games over the past three years, will make his debut appearance on the Asian Para Games stage, competing in the 50m butterfly on the 20th, and the 50m and 400m freestyle on the 23rd.

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