(Asiad) S. Korea beats Hong Kong to begin women's handball competition

Inazawa, Japan - South Korea kicked off their women's handball tournament at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Saturday with a commanding 48-16 victory over Hong Kong, according to Yonhap news agency. Coach Lee Kye-chung led the South Korean team, which led 5-2 early and then scored 11 goals in a row to dominate the game. Lee Won-jung was the top scorer for South Korea with nine goals, while Jeon Ji-yeon added eight goals to the team's tally.

A dozen players managed at least one goal for the South Korean squad. The tournament will not include a knockout stage, with the top three teams advancing to the medal round after round-robin matches. South Korea will face Kazakhstan on Sunday, Uzbekistan on Wednesday, China on Friday, Vietnam next Saturday, and Japan on September 27.

A win against Japan is likely to decide the gold medal. South Korea has won gold in 2014 and 2018, but lost to Japan in the 2023 final. At the pregame ceremony, neither team's anthem was played, and an anthem mix-up occurred before a men's field hockey match for South Korea against North Korea, with South Korea's anthem being substituted for North Korea's. The organizing committee formally apologized to the South Korean delegation on Saturday.