Korea makes men's 4x200-meter freestyle final without world champion

Korea’s Lee Ho-joon, Lee Yoo-yeon, Kim Yeong-hyeon and Kim Woo-min competed in the race, with Kim Woo-min as anchor.

Swimmers compete in the men's 4x200-meter freestyle relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Tuesday in Nanterre, France. [AP/YONHAP]

Korea reached the finals of men’s 4x200-meter freestyle relay with a qualifying time of 7:07.96 on Tuesday at Paris La Defense Arena in Nanterre, France, keeping alive their shot at snatching a spot on the podium.

They snagged the seventh spot in the finals, placing above Japan and Israel, who tied for eight with a time of 7:08.43.

Korea’s Lee Ho-joon, Lee Yoo-yeon, Kim Yeong-hyeon and Kim Woo-min competed in the race, with Kim Woo-min as anchor.

Korea failed to advance to the finals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, placing 13th in the qualifying heats.

They were without Hwang Sun-woo, who competed in the race in Tokyo, with Kim Yeong-hyeong the sole newcomer for Paris.

Both Hwang and Kim Woo-min had failed to reach the individual men's 200-meter final, falling just short in the semifinals on Sunday.

Kim Woo-min on Saturday became the second-ever Korean to medal in the sport at the Olympics, claiming bronze in the men’s 400-meter freestyle.

Before Saturday, Park Tae-hwan was the only Korean swimmer to have claimed an Olympic medal — his last in London in 2012.

BY MARY YANG [mary.yang@joongang.co.kr]