Despite missing the final by 0.02 seconds, Hwang Sun-woo (20, Gangwon Provincial Office) recorded Korea’s highest-ever World Championships finish in the men’s 100-meter freestyle.Hwang touched the touchpad in 48.08 seconds during the men’s 100-meter freestyle semifinals at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships at Fukuoka Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall on Saturday in Fukuoka, Japan.Competing in lane 7 of heat 1, Hwang finished sixth in his heat and ninth overall, missing out on a spot in the eight-man final.Only 0.02 seconds separated Hwang from eighth-place finisher Jack Alexi (20-USA), who finished in 48.06.Hwang’s dream of becoming the first South Korean to reach the men’s 100-meter freestyle final at a long course (50-meter) World Championships sportstotozonecom was dashed by 0.02 seconds.”I was disappointed to finish in the low 48s, which was below my season’s best of 47.79,” Hwang said, adding, “I haven’t perfected my physical fitness yet, so my performance was a bit lackluster.””I will get better as I continue to gain experience and move forward,” he said, adding, “First of all, I think it was a better performance than last year’s Budapest meet, so I will continue to race in the direction of improving my time until the Asian Games start in September.”It was a disappointing result for Hwang, who became the first South Korean swimmer to win back-to-back World Championships medals in the 200-meter freestyle (second in Budapest in 2022 and third in Fukuoka in 2023), as he failed to reach the final of the 100-meter freestyle.