Who is Kang Yeon-seo? The 14-year-old archer stuns defending champion Jyothi Surekha

As Jyothi Surekha Vennam entered the arena to book her place in the quarter-finals of the Women’s Compound Individual Archery event. After all, she is the defending champion and she should have been to lead India’s medal charge in archery.

She was also up against 14-year-old Kang Yeon Seo, who was making her Asian Games debut. So the two archers took aim, letting their arrows decide the final outcome rather than outside noise. And when the result came in, Jyothi showed the escape door while Seo shocked everyone and sent shockwaves across the archery field.

Asian Games 2026, September 28 update

The 14-year-old was perfection personified that day as she scored a perfect 150 to set an Asian Games record. She soon put Jyothi under pressure as the defending champion failed to score just 27.

While Jyothi had a perfect second series, Seo matched her with three tens to maintain the lead. The Indian ace failed again in the third set with a nine on his last arrow.

Jyothi attempted a comeback but Seo kept her cool and cut off the game and the defending champion to boost Korea’s individual medal hopes.

So, who is this 14-year-old who shocked the world by defeating Jyothi?

WHO IS KANG YEON-SEO?

Born on November 1, 2011, Kang Yeon-seo made history by becoming the youngest archer ever to be selected for the South Korean national team. Her performance at the Asian Games came after she broke the previous record held by Kim Je-deok.

The recurve archer was 17 when he represented South Korea at the Tokyo Olympics, winning two gold medals. Kang has now reduced that benchmark by three years, gaining recognition as the youngest national team archer in the country’s history.

Her selection also signaled a shift in the direction of Korean archery as they decided to put their faith in the young gun.

“I still can’t believe it. It feels like a dream. I didn’t even know I was a high school freshman; every game I just focused on every shot,” Seo said after being selected for the Asian Games, as quoted by Chosun.

Kang Yeon-seo finished fourth in the rankings after collecting 701 points. Her contribution also helped South Korea score 2,096 points in the women’s team competition, placing them third behind China and India, who both scored 2,099.

She carried this form into the individual draw as well. Kang comfortably beat Mongolia’s Otgonbayar Dagdzhav 150-133 in the round of 32 before securing another win to secure a place in the round of 16, keeping her gold medal hopes alive.

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