{
  "id": 10447527,
  "title": "Men's handball coach praises players despite semifinal loss to Qatar at Asian Games",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/28/mens-handball-coach-praises-players-despite-semifinal-loss-to-qatar-10447527",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-28T13:12:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/sports/20260928/mens-handball-coach-praises-players-despite-semifinal-loss-to-qatar-at-asian-games"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Inazawa, Japan — Following their defeat in the men's handball semifinal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Monday, South Korea's head coach commended his players for competing on equal footing with the defending champion Qatar. Coach Cho Young-shin expressed his pride in his team, acknowledging their performance despite the loss. \"I told my players that I'm proud of them. We lost the match, but our players did well,\" he said, visibly emotional after the game. \"I believe our players' determination and resolve to win were stronger than those of the opponent.\"\n\nKorea faced Qatar 32-20 in the event's semifinal at Entrio in Inazawa, located just northwest of Nagoya, Japan. The Korean team put up a spirited fight in the first half and the initial 20 minutes of the second half against the Qatari team, which is aiming for its fourth consecutive Asian Games title. However, they were unable to mount a comeback in the final stages of the match.\n\nFrom an objective standpoint, Coach Cho believes that the Qatari team, pursuing its fourth consecutive Asian Games gold, was approximately seven to three better than his team. Nonetheless, he emphasized that his players played on equal terms for 60 minutes, remaining resolute and giving their all throughout the game. South Korea had been striving for its first gold medal in men's handball since the Asian Games in 2010.",
  "summary": "INAZAWA, Japan — After losing their berth in the men's handball final at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Monday, Korea's head coach praised his players for competing on equal terms with defending champion Qatar. \"I told my players that I'm proud of them. We lost the match, but our players did well,\" said Cho Young-shin, who broke into tears after the semifinal. \"I think our players' resolve and…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "(Asiad) S. Korea falls to Qatar in men's handball semis, drops to bronze medal match",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/28/asiad-s-korea-falls-to-qatar-in-mens-handball-semis-drops-to-bronze",
        "published": "2026-09-28T10:16:40.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Men's handball coach praises players despite semifinal loss to Qatar at Asian Games",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/28/mens-handball-coach-praises-players-despite-semifinal-loss-to-qatar",
        "published": "2026-09-28T12:47:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}