Im Jongeon Claims Korea's First Short Track Medal with Bronze in Men's 1000 m

by Park Pyunghee

Published 13 Feb.2026 06:21(KST)

Updated 13 Feb.2026 06:23(KST)

Lim Jongeon, the new ace of Korean men's short track, has captured Korea's first short track medal at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

Lim won the bronze medal with a time of 1:24.611 in the men's 1000m short track final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, held on the 13th (Korean time) at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy. He finished just 0.074 seconds behind Jens van't Wout of the Netherlands, who took the gold medal. The silver medal went to Sun Long of China, who recorded a time of 1:24.565.

Lim Jongeon is celebrating, wrapped in the Taegeukgi, after winning the bronze medal with a time of 1:24.611 in the men's 1000m short track final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics held on the 13th (Korean time) at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy. [Photo by Yonhap News]

In the final, they were joined by William Dandjinou of Canada and Roberts Kruzbergs of Latvia.

Lim started from lane four in the final. He settled into fourth place right after the start and waited for his chance from the back, while Dandjinou and van't Wout battled for the lead in the early stages. In both the quarterfinals and semifinals, Lim had launched his sprint with fewer than two laps remaining, finishing second in his quarterfinal heat and first in his semifinal heat.

The final, however, was not easy. Lim remained in last place until the final lap, then took a wide outside line on the last corner and, after a fierce battle to the finish, managed to snatch a medal with a last-gasp lunge.

Shin Dongmin, who also competed, finished fifth in semifinal heat 1 and failed to advance to the final. Shin placed third in Final B. Hwang Daeheon was disqualified in the quarterfinals.

In the women's 500m, held earlier, Choi Minjeong, Kim Gilli, and Lee Soyeon all missed out on medals. Choi advanced to the quarterfinals by winning her heat, raising hopes for a medal, but failed to clear the semifinal hurdle against three Canadian skaters. Choi finished second in Final B. Kim and Lee were eliminated in the quarterfinals.