[Olympics] Let's Go for Gold in Short Track Tonight

Men's 5000m Relay Park Jang-hyeok Joins... Hwang Dae-heon’s Chance to Continue Multi-Champion Legacy
Gwak Yun-gi's Olympic Farewell... Choi Min-jeong Challenges 1500m Back-to-Back Titles

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The South Korean short track sibling athletes who competed in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will make their final sprint to finish strong on the 16th.

Hwang Daeheon and Lee Junseo (both from Korea National Sport University), Park Janghyuk (Sports Toto), and Kwak Yoon-gi (Goyang City Hall) will compete in the men's 5000m relay final at 8:32 PM (Korean time) at the Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing, China. They will compete for medals against the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), Canada, Italy, and China. Originally, four teams compete, but China, which finished last in the semifinals, advanced by receiving an advance. The men's team holds the fastest semifinal record (6 minutes 37.879 seconds). An Olympic victory is expected for the first time in 16 years since the 2006 Torino Games.

For Park Janghyuk (Sports Toto), this is the last chance to shake off bad luck. He fell during the 2000m mixed relay preliminary, his first medal race, which greatly affected their elimination. In the men's 1000m quarterfinals, he collided with Pietro Sighel (Italy), resulting in a left hand injury cut by a skate blade. Park Janghyuk, who got the opportunity to compete instead of Kim Dongwook (Sports Toto), said, "I considered withdrawing because I might cause trouble for my teammates, but with help from (Kwak) Yoon-gi hyung, I pulled myself together," and explained, "The injured hand does not affect my ability to compete."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Hwang Daeheon, the men's 1500m gold medalist, has his last chance to continue the legacy of multiple gold medals. The short track team has produced eight multiple gold medalists at the Winter Olympics. Starting with Kim Ki-hoon at the 1992 Albertville Games, Jeon Ik-kyung at the 1994 Lillehammer and 1998 Nagano Games, Ahn Hyun-soo (Viktor Ahn) and Jin Sun-yu at the 2006 Torino Games, Lee Jung-su at the 2010 Vancouver Games, Park Seung-hee at the 2014 Sochi Games, and Choi Min-jeong at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games. The only athlete with a chance to become a multiple gold medalist this time is Hwang Daeheon, who has already won one gold medal. He said, "The expectations around me are a burden, but I am eager."

The eldest brother Kwak Yoon-gi is competing in his last Olympic stage. Kwak did not qualify for individual events and has only practiced for the relay. He is highly anticipated due to his agile movements and consistent strength in the 5000m relay. Notably, at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, he made a deep impression by cutting into the inside lane on the last corner and overtaking Anton Ono (USA) and Han Jialiang (China) simultaneously to finish second.

Choi Min-jeong (Seongnam City Hall), who won silver medals in the women's 1000m and 3000m relay, will challenge for her second consecutive Olympic gold in the 1500m. Choi will compete in heat 1 of the quarterfinals. Lee Yubin (Yonsei University), the world number one in this event this season, will compete in heat 5, and the eldest sister Kim Arang (Goyang City Hall) will compete in heat 2.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Choi Min-jeong won the 1500m gold medal at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics with a time of 2 minutes 24.948 seconds. She also holds the world record. Her determination for a consecutive win is strong enough that she trains alone with male athletes even on rest days. Choi said, "Since our country has consistently shown good performances in long-distance events, I will compete with a sense of responsibility."

Choi Min-jeong's strongest rival is Suzanne Schulting (Netherlands), who won two gold medals in the women's 3000m relay and 1000m at this Olympics. Choi has been narrowly defeated at the finish line each time. She said, "The competitors I faced ultimately made me improve and grow." If Choi adds another medal, her total Olympic medal count will reach five, putting her on par with the short track record holders Jeon Ik-kyung (4 golds, 1 bronze) and Park Seung-hee (2 golds, 3 bronzes).

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