'Smile Jumper' Woo Sang-hyeok (29, Yongin City Hall) claimed his fourth consecutive medal at the World Indoor Athletics Championships.
Woo finished in a tie for third place with a clearance of 2.26 meters in the men's high jump final at the 2026 World Indoor Athletics Championships held at the Toruń Kuyavian-Pomeranian Arena in Poland on March 20 (local time).
The defending champion failed to secure back-to-back titles but successfully extended his medal streak to four consecutive editions of the competition.
Woo first reached the World Indoor Championships podium in 2022 at Belgrade, where he won gold with a 2.34-meter clearance—becoming the first Korean track and field athlete to medal at the event. He followed with a bronze medal at the 2024 Glasgow edition, clearing 2.28 meters, then claimed gold at the 2025 Nanjing championships with a 2.31-meter jump.
On this day, Woo cleared 2.17 meters easily on his first attempt, then successfully passed 2.22 and 2.26 meters on his first tries as well, building momentum.
However, he was unable to overcome the 2.30-meter barrier. On his first attempt, his right thigh slightly grazed the bar, resulting in failure. Woo ultimately could not clear 2.30 meters on his second and third attempts either.
