Members of the national team for the Aichi-Nagoya Summer Asian Games in Japan on Aug. 26 pose for photos at an event 30 days before the tournament begins at Jincheon National Training Center in Jincheon-gun County, Chungcheongbuk-do Province. (Yonhap News)

By Jeong Euiseok

The national team for the Aichi-Nagoya Summer Asian Games in Japan will see over 1,000 athletes.

The Korean Sport and Olympic Committee (KSOC) in a board meeting in Seoul on Aug. 26 finalized a delegation of 1,052 competitors in 41 sports.

At an Aug. 20 event to mark the 30-day countdown before the tournament, the KSOC announced its goal of winning 40-45 gold medals for third-place overall at Jincheon National Training Center in Jincheon-gun County, Chungcheongbuk-do Province.

To this end, Team Korea will focus on earning golds in its strongest events like archery, swimming, shooting, fencing, taekwondo and badminton.

KSOC President Ryu Seung-min said, "We have room to raise our goal."

"We surpassed Japan in the overall medal count at the last Asian Games in Hangzhou (China)," added Lee Sang-hyun, head of the Korean delegation. "Though Japan will come on strong, we are counting on our athletes' unique ability to overcome adversity as well as the strong performances of up-and-coming talent."

The team on Sept. 3 will hold a launching ceremony and send its main contingent to Nagoya on Sept. 17.

From Sept. 19 to Oct. 4, this year's Summer Asiad will open in Nagoya and Aichi Prefecture, with teams vying for 469 golds in 43 sports and 71 disciplines.