The World is Watching! This Showdown 'Kim Yeon-koung vs Karakurt'

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[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] "Whose spike is stronger, Kim Yeon-koung (33) or Evrar Karakurt (20)?"

There is a video titled ‘Kim Yeon-koung VS Karakurt’ on YouTube. The two players faced off on June 20 while wearing their national team uniforms in their respective countries at the 2021 Volleyball Nations League (VNL) preliminary round held in Rimini, Italy. The YouTube video was edited and uploaded by a volleyball fan showing footage from that match.

In just over a month, the video has surpassed 40,000 views, and the comments have exceeded ninety and continue to grow. Volleyball fans worldwide are fiercely debating who holds the advantage between Kim Yeon-koung and Karakurt. It is reminiscent of football fans’ ‘MeHo War’ (the debate comparing Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo).

One netizen praised, "Karakurt is currently an unbeatable legend," while another countered, "Still, Kim Yeon-koung is number one. She is an all-around player." This debate will intensify in Tokyo as the two players meet again on a narrow bridge.

Our women’s volleyball national team will clash with Turkey on the morning of the 4th at 9 a.m. at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, competing for a spot in the semifinals of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The performance of the two teams’ aces, Kim Yeon-koung and Karakurt, will be decisive. Kim Yeon-koung mainly plays as a left-side hitter, while Karakurt plays as a right-side hitter. They are expected to face off multiple times across the net.

Kim Yeon-koung’s offensive power has reached its peak. She has also made history in scoring. Having participated in the 2012 London, 2016 Rio, and 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she became the first player to record over 30 points in four Olympic matches.

In the match against Japan on the 31st, she exploded with 30 points, leading a thrilling 3-2 comeback victory and securing a ticket to the quarterfinals for South Korea. Throughout the five group stage matches, she played a vital role as captain and ace, scoring 87 points.

Kim Yeon-koung knows Turkey well. She played for Turkey’s women’s professional volleyball teams Fenerbah?e SK from 2011 to 2017 and Eczacıba?ı VitrA from 2018 to 2020. Conversely, Turkey also knows Kim Yeon-koung’s skills well and will stop at nothing to block her.

In Turkey, Karakurt is a player to watch. She is a rising star currently receiving much attention. After debuting in the 2018-2019 season with the Turkish professional volleyball team VakıfBank SK, her skills have rapidly improved. She is also well known to domestic volleyball fans for a story where, as a youth player in a Turkish professional volleyball team, she took a photo with Kim Yeon-koung, who was then playing for Fenerbah?e SK. Now, she has grown into Turkey’s ace and will face Kim Yeon-koung.

Karakurt’s strengths lie in her powerful spikes and serves. In the VNL preliminaries held two months ago, South Korea lost to Turkey 1-3 in sets, conceding 22 points to Karakurt alone. This time, things must be different. Although Karakurt’s offensive skills are excellent, she is known for making many errors. If we can exploit moments when she falters due to mistakes, we have a chance to win.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.