In the men’s 77-kilogram weightlifting competition at the Beijing University Aeronautics and Astronautic Gymnasium, Sa lifted a total of 366 kg, with 163 kg in snatch and 203 kg in clean and jerk, and was tied with Li Hongli of China. But since Sa at 76.46 kg weighs less than Li with 76.91kg, the gold went to Sa.

Sa Jae-hyouk lifts 163 kg in the second attempt of snatch in the men’s 77-kg weightlifting at the Beijing University Aeronautics and Astronautic Gymnasium on Wednesday. /Yonhap

Korea has also secured at least the silver in badminton. In the Beijing University of Technology Gymnasium, Lee Kyung-won and Lee Hyo-jung beat Japan’s Miyuki Maeda and Satoko Suetsuna in the semifinals of the women’s doubles 2-0 and advanced to the finals.

Lee Kyung-won, left, and Lee Hyo-jung play against Maeda Miyuki andSuetsuna Satoko Japan in the women's doubles quarterfinal badminton match of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on Wednesday./AFP

The Korean baseball team, meanwhile, rallied back from a one-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth and won the first match among eight countries in the round-robin tournament over the United States, 8-7. Korea nearly lost the game when it relinquished its lead at 6-4, giving up three runs in the top of the ninth to make the score 6-7. However, it managed to pull two runs off U.S. closing pitcher Jeff Stevens in the bottom of the ninth, including the winning run by Lee Jong-wook’s sacrifice fly to the outfield.

In the men’s football, Korea beat Honduras 1-0 and finished the preliminaries in Group D with one win, one draw and one loss. But that was not enough to advance to the quarterfinal, placing the country third in the group after Italy, who won twice and drew once, and Cameroon with one win and two draws.

As of 10 a.m. Wednesday, South Korea is still in third place in the medals count, with six gold medals, six silver and one bronze. China leads with 17 golds, five silvers and five bronze, followed by the U.S. with 10, eight and 11.

(englishnews@chosun.com )