'Volleyball Empress' Kim Yeon-kyung's Dedication and Leadership Gain Attention Among IOC Members

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The dedication and leadership of South Korea’s women’s volleyball star Kim Yeon-koung (33, Shanghai, China) have become a hot topic among International Olympic Committee (IOC) members.

According to the Korea Sports Council on the 7th, Lee Ki-heung, president of the Korea Sports Council and IOC member, recently met with IOC President Thomas Bach at the Tokyo Okura Hotel, the IOC headquarters hotel during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where they discussed the Korean athletes’ fighting spirit displayed during the games.

Kim Yeon-koung, who led the Korean women’s volleyball team to the Olympic semifinals for the first time in nine years since London 2012 by defeating Turkey, received the most attention.

The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) praised Kim Yeon-koung, who demonstrated strong leadership in the dramatic comeback victory against Japan that secured Korea’s place in the quarterfinals and in the quarterfinal match against Turkey, calling her “a player who might appear once in a billion.”

President Lee introduced, “President Bach showed great interest in player Kim Yeon-koung, and several IOC members are well aware of the excellent performances of our athletes. They met with me and other Sports Council officials to congratulate us on our achievements.”

President Lee also revealed that IOC members highly appreciated the skills of Hwang Sun-woo (18, Seoul Physical Education High School), who followed Park Tae-hwan’s legacy in swimming, and Shin Jae-hwan (23, Jecheon City Hall), who won the gold medal in men’s vault gymnastics.

The scene of An San (20, Gwangju Women’s University), who won three gold medals in archery, shooting three arrows scoring 10 points including a shoot-off in the women’s individual final on July 30, also left a deep impression on IOC members. It is said that President Bach was surprised and highly praised An San’s “strong heart.”

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