Kim Young-beom aims for world record

[Anchor]

Ahead of the World Swimming Championships in Singapore this month, the youngest member of the relay team, Kim Young-beom, made a surprising announcement.

He has boldly declared his goal of breaking the world record.

With Kim Young-beom's emergence, the confidence of the relay team is at an all-time high.

This is a report by Moon Young-kyu.

[Report]

The 19-year-old promising rookie Kim Young-beom startled his senior teammates with a bold declaration during the press conference.

[Kim Young-beom/National Swimming Team: "My goal for the 800m freestyle is to set a new world record."]

[Hwang Sun-woo/National Swimming Team: "This... world record goal, was this something we'd discussed in advance? Or not?"]

Kim is about 3 seconds off the current world record.

While it may seem ambitious, there’s good reason for his confidence.

At the Doha meet, where Korea won silver, Yang Jae-hoon swam the opening leg in 1 minute 47.78 seconds. In comparison, Kim’s personal best stands at 1 minute 46 seconds, which is 1.65 seconds faster.

At 195 cm tall with a wingspan of 2.16 m, Kim possesses outstanding physical advantages.

Since he only began competing in the 200m freestyle last month, Kim Young-beom is rapidly improving his record, and is expected to accelerate further.

[Kim Young-beom/National Swimming Team: "I think I can break into the 1 minute 45 seconds range. I also believe I can go even faster, which is why I set that goal."]

The 3m deep swimming pool at the Jincheon National Training Center is also a great support for the national team.

In May, construction was completed to increase its depth by 1m to meet international standards, helping athletes better prepare for world-class conditions.

[Kim Woo-min/National Swimming Team: "I feel like the buoyancy is different, so I think I will perform better at the World Championships since it will feel just like practice."]

The golden generation’s performance is highly anticipated at the Singapore World Championships starting on the 27th.

This is KBS News, Moon Young-kyu.