Im Jongeon Advances to Milan Olympics Men's 1000m Short Track Final

Im Jongeon, the new ace of Korean men's short track, has advanced to the men's 1000m short track final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

Im Jongeon finished first with a time of 1 minute 24.025 seconds in Heat 2 of the men's 1000m short track semifinal at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, held at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, on the 13th (Korea time).

Lim Jongeon is sprinting in the final moments of the men's 1000m short track semifinal at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics held at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy on the 13th (Korea time). [Photo by Yonhap News Agency]

Just as he did in the quarterfinals, Im Jongeon poured on the power in the final phase of the race to reach the final. Right after the start, he settled into fourth place and calmly waited for his chance. With a lap and a half remaining, he began his sprint, surged to the front in an instant, and secured his spot in the final. In the quarterfinals, he also launched his sprint with two laps to go and finished second in his heat.

Shin Dongmin, who also reached the semifinals, raced in Heat 1 alongside William Dandjinou of Canada, the world’s strongest skater. He finished last and failed to advance to the final.

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