Handball - Team Republic of Korea

General
The Republic of Korea have won gold at six of the 10 editions of the Asian Games to feature men's handball, although they are looking for their first title since 2010 at the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou. Their record includes a run of five consecutive gold medals from 1986 to 2002 before a brief dip in performance in 2006 in Doha saw them finish fourth - the only time they have failed to win a medal at the Games. They bounced back to claim their sixth Asian Games gold in Guangzhou in 2010, beating the Islamic Republic of Iran 32-28 in the final. However, they lost to Qatar in the final of the 2014 Games in Incheon and had to settle for third place at Indonesia 2018 after another defeat to the Qataris, this time in the semifinals, was followed by a bronze medal match win against Japan.

The Korean team have a similarly impressive record at the Asian championship, boasting nine titles since the tournament began in 1977 including five-in-a-row from 1983 to 1993 and three-in-a-row from 2008 to 2012. They have not achieved the same level of results in recent years, although they did reach the final in 2020 in Kuwait, where they lost 33-21 to Qatar.

The Republic of Korea competed at seven editions of the Olympic Games between 1984 and 2012, winning their only medal, a silver, as host nation of the 1988 Games in Seoul. The team did not compete at the Olympic Games at either Rio 2016 or Tokyo 2020

In 2021 they made their first appearance at the world championship in eight years. They also competed at the tournament in 2023. Their best placing at the world championship came in 1997 when they were ranked eighth, the only time they have finished inside the top 10 at the tournament. A unified Korea team placed 22nd at the 2019 World Championship in Denmark and Germany.