Korea Sets New National Record in Women's 4x100m Freestyle but Misses Medal A new national record was set by South Korea in the women's 4x100m freestyle relay, but the team fell short of winning a medal.The team, consisting of Lee Song-eun, Jo Hyun-joo, Heo Yeon-kyung, and Kim Yoon-hee, recorded a time of 3 minutes and 40.26 seconds on September 20 at the Tokyo Aquatics Center. This time was 5.10 seconds faster than their preliminary time of 3 minutes and 45.36 seconds earlier that morning, which featured Han Da-kyung and Lee Hee-eun instead of Jo and Kim.Despite the re September 20, 2026

Lee Joo-ho Wins Bronze in Men's 100m Backstroke at Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Lee Joo-ho secured a bronze medal in the men's 100m backstroke at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, finishing just 0.01 seconds behind Japan's Hidekazu Takehara.On September 20, at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Lee clocked a time of 53.94 seconds to take third place.The gold medal was won by China's Xu Jiayu, who set a new tournament record of 51.98 seconds, marking his third consecutive victory in this event. Takehara finished second with a time of 53.93 seconds.Earlier in the day, Lee qualified for t September 20, 2026

South Korea's Women's Table Tennis Team Dominates Kazakhstan, Advances to Quarterfinals The South Korean women's table tennis team achieved a commanding victory over Kazakhstan, marking their second consecutive win and securing a spot in the quarterfinals.On September 20, during the second group stage match of the women's team event at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at Sky Hall Toyota in Aichi Prefecture, South Korea triumphed with a 3-0 win against Kazakhstan. This victory followed an earlier 3-0 defeat of the Maldives earlier that day, confirming South Korea's position as September 20, 2026

Iran Threatens to Keep Strait of Hormuz Closed if Peace Conditions Are Not Met Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran's parliament and head of its negotiating team with the United States, warned that Iran would continue to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed if its proposed conditions for peace are not met. On September 20, Ghalibaf stated during the opening speech of a parliamentary session, "Unless our conditions are fulfilled, the legitimate rights of the Iranian nation are recognized, and the United States implements these, there will be no room for returning to ne September 20, 2026

Hanwha Ocean Showcases Submarine Technology with the Launch of Seohee 'We do not compromise on safety.'Before entering the Hanwha Ocean shipyard in Geoje, a large sign on the building's exterior caught the eye. As the bus carrying reporters passed between the massive vessels under construction, the company’s fire station, '2119,' came into view. Upon arriving at the special shipbuilding area, security was emphasized in addition to safety. Each reporter's phone was affixed with a security sticker. This shipyard, where naval combat ships and submarines are built, wa September 20, 2026

Electronic Shareholder Meetings to Launch in October Starting in January, large listed companies with assets exceeding 2 trillion won will be required to hold electronic shareholder meetings. In response, the Korea Securities Depository will unveil its 'electronic shareholder meeting platform' in October.The Depository announced on the 20th that it is building the platform to comply with the revised Commercial Act, and it plans to open after conducting user testing and final functionality checks. Following a pilot operation with select users, the September 20, 2026

Korean Women's Volleyball Team Reaches Semifinals at 2026 Asian Games The South Korean women's volleyball team secured a spot in the semifinals of the 2026 Asian Games, marking their first appearance in the final four since the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games. They had failed to win a medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Games.On September 20, at the Park Arena Komaki in Aichi, Japan, South Korea defeated Kazakhstan (ranked 42nd) with a set score of 3-0 (26-24, 27-25, 25-21) in the quarterfinals.Under the guidance of head coach Cha Sang-hyun, the South Korean team advanced to September 20, 2026

Kim Young-beom Wins Silver in Men's 100m Freestyle at 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Kim Young-beom secured a silver medal in the men's 100m freestyle, marking South Korea's first swimming medal at the event. Hwang Sun-woo also proved his mettle by winning a bronze medal.On September 20, at the Tokyo Aquatics Center, Kim clocked a time of 47.65 seconds to finish second in the men's 100m freestyle. Notably, he led the race up to the 50m mark, drawing attention.Hwang Sun-woo also made it to the podium with a time of 47.79 seconds, earning a bronze medal for the second consecutive September 20, 2026

AI Revolutionizes K-Bio: Companies Build In-House Platforms Amid Talent Shortage Domestic pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are increasingly developing their own artificial intelligence (AI) platforms and engaging in global collaborative research. This strategy aims to enhance their competitiveness in new drug development by combining proprietary data and research capabilities with AI-driven candidate substance discovery. However, the industry is still in its early stages, as few companies have secured sufficient specialized personnel and high-quality research data September 20, 2026

AI Revolutionizes Drug Development, Shaping Pharmaceutical Competitiveness Artificial intelligence (AI) is moving beyond being a mere tool for identifying drug candidates and is now deeply integrated into the entire drug development process. Its applications are rapidly expanding, covering everything from disease target discovery to protein structure prediction, candidate design and optimization, toxicity prediction, clinical trial participant selection, and forecasting clinical success. In response, major global pharmaceutical companies are ramping up their investment September 20, 2026