[Photo News] World surfing champions

Since its debut at the Tokyo Olympics, the popularity of surfing has been on the rise around the world. On Sept. 14, surfers competed at the finals of the Rip Curl World Surfing League, one of the world‘s largest surfing events. The championship was held at Trestles Beach in California, a top surf destination. Trestles Beach is well known for its dynamic waves and ideal wind conditions.  Gabriel Medina, a surfer who won the 2014 and 2018 championships, defeated Filipe Toledo, after

Sept. 22, 2021

S. Korean volleyball MVP under investigation for assault charges

The reigning South Korean men's volleyball MVP Jung Ji-seok is under police investigation for allegedly assaulting his ex-girlfriend, sources said Thursday. According to the sources, Jung, a star outside hitter for the Korean Air Jumbos in the V-League, was recently questioned by police on charges of assaulting his ex-girlfriend and installing a hidden camera in the home the two share. The sources said the girlfriend recently reported Jung's alleged assault to police. A woman who claimed to be

Sept. 2, 2021

Damwon defeats T1 to win LCK Summer

Defending champion Damwon Kia took home the LCK trophy, beating T1 3-1 in the finals on Saturday evening and winning prize money of 200 million won ($171,800). Although Damwon was the clear favorite leading up to the finals, strong performances from both teams in their quarterfinals raised expectations for a competitive match. Damwon clearly dominated the game, however. Despite T1’s comeback on the third game, Damwon took down the challenger in a convincing 3-1 victory. Damwon&rsqu

Aug. 30, 2021

Three foreign coaches to head S. Korea's national curling team

A Canadian coach who guided the South Korean women's curling team to a silver medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics will return to the post to seek another medal at the upcoming Beijing Winter Games. The Korea Curling Federation said Saturday that three coaches will lead the country's national team for the 2021-2022 season. Peter Gallant from Canada was named the coach of the women's national curling team, better known by its nickname Team Kim, comprised of skip Kim Eun-jung, lead Kim Yeon

Aug. 28, 2021

Damwon Kia and T1 to clash for LCK Summer title

All eyes are on Damwon Kia and T1 as the two head to the 2021 League of Legends Champions Korea summer season finals on Aug. 28. At an online press conference for the LCK Summer Finals held on Tuesday afternoon, both coach Kim “kkOma” Jeong-gyun of Damwon Kia and Son “Stardust” Seok-hee of T1 were confident of winning the last match of the summer. “I certainly recognize T1 as a strong opponent, but because we are in the finals I will make my utmost effort to win

Aug. 24, 2021

S. Korean-born taekwondo coach for Thailand wants to improve sports diplomacy between two countries

For the past two decades, South Korean-born taekwondo coach Choi Young-seok has made efforts to help Thailand make its presence felt in the international sporting world and finally accomplished the goal at the Tokyo Olympics. His longtime student Panipak Wongpattanakit won the women's 49-kilogram title at the Summer Games that closed Aug. 8. It was the Southeast Asian country's first Olympic taekwondo gold medal and the only gold won in Tokyo. Thailand previously had two Olympic silvers and th

Aug. 20, 2021

LCK to hold summer playoffs in empty stadium

The 2021 League of Legends Champions Korea summer season finals will take place in an empty CJ ENM Studio in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Aug. 28, LCK said in a press release Wednesday. In compliance with the social distancing guidelines, all playoff games will be held without spectators. With one week remaining in the LCK summer season, all six of the teams that will advance to the playoffs starting Aug. 18 have yet to be determined. While Liiv Sandbox is currently in the No. 1 spot, the rank

Aug. 12, 2021

Teen swimming sensation Hwang Sun-woo eyes Olympic medals in 2024

Having had his first taste of the Olympics at age 18, South Korean swimmer Hwang Sun-woo is turning his focus to the 2024 Summer Games in Paris. Hwang competed in two finals at the recently concluded Tokyo Olympics. He set an Asian record with 47.56 seconds in the semifinals of the 100-meter freestyle and finished in fifth place in the final. He became the first Asian swimmer in 65 years to even race in an Olympic final for the 100m freestyle. In the 200m freestyle earlier in Tokyo, Hwang set

Aug. 11, 2021

Inseparable friends in badminton happy to be reunited in quest for medal in Tokyo

They have been friends for 14 years and have won world junior titles together. And finally, South Korean badminton stars Lee So-hee and Shin Seung-chan will team up in the women's doubles at the Olympics this summer in Tokyo. Lee and Shin each competed at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics with different, older doubles partners. Lee and Chang Ye-na were knocked out of the quarterfinals, but Shin and Jung Kyung-eun grabbed bronze. Lee and Shin won the women's doubles titles at the world junior ch

July 7, 2021

S. Korean Kwon Soon-woo eliminated in 2nd round at Wimbledon

South Korea's Kwon Soon-woo has been knocked out in the second round of Wimbledon. Kwon, ranked 71st, lost a five-set, four-hour battle against Dominik Koepfer at the All England Club in London on Wednesday (local time). The 62nd-ranked German prevailed 6-3, 6-7 (8-10), 7-6 (7-2), 5-7, 6-3. Kwon earned his first career victory at Wimbledon on Tuesday with a four-set victory against Daniel Masur, also from Germany. Kwon walked away with 45 ranking points and should crack the top 70 after the c

July 1, 2021

S. Korea falls to Venezuela to open Olympic men's basketball qualifying event

South Korea is off to a losing start in its bid to qualify for the Olympic men's basketball tournament for the first time in a quarter century. South Korea fell to Venezuela 94-80 in its first game of the FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament at Zalgirio Arena in Kaunas, Lithuania, on Wednesday (local time), as its spirited second-half comeback attempt fell short. Davidson forward Lee Hyun-jung led South Korea with a game-high 18 points on a 7-of-14 shooting, and naturalized starting center Ra Gu

July 1, 2021

S. Korean Kwon Soon-woo wins 1st round men's singles match at Wimbledon

It took him two days, but South Korea's Kwon Soon-woo finally has his first victory in the men's singles at Wimbledon. The 71st-ranked Kwon defeated Daniel Masur of Germany 3-1 (6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4) in the opening round match of the Grand Slam tournament in London on Tuesday (local time). Their match began Monday after more than three hours of rain delay and was suspended due to darkness after Masur took the first set in 51 minutes. When the match resumed the following day, Kwon quickly

June 30, 2021

Serena Williams says she will not play at the Tokyo Olympics

WIMBLEDON (AP) -- Serena Williams said she will not go to the Tokyo Olympics, but did not want to say why during her pre-Wimbledon video conference with reporters Sunday. "I'm actually not on the Olympic list. ... Not that I'm aware of. If so, then I shouldn't be on it," Williams said. The 39-year-old Williams has won four gold medals at past Summer Games for the United States: in both singles and doubles at the 2012 London Olympics -- which held the tennis competition at the All Eng

June 27, 2021

A member of BTS Army, teen table tennis star wants to be 'dope' at Olympics

MUNGYEONG -- Watch the South Korean teen phenom Shin Yu-bin play table tennis, and you can imagine that she must listen to music with beats as dynamic as her strokes. Shin, two weeks from her 17th birthday and the youngest member of the national team for the Tokyo Olympics, is a proud member of BTS Army, the global fan base for the K-pop sensation. With the Olympics about a month away, Shin, who carries photos of BTS members in her backpack, said she already has set her BTS playlist for Tokyo.

June 21, 2021

Kwon Soon-woo ousted in 3rd round at French Open

South Korean player Kwon Soon-woo couldn't get past the third round of the French Open against a top-10 opponent. Kwon, world No. 91, dropped a straight-set decision against the ninth-ranked Matteo Berrettini, 7-6 (8-6), 6-3, 6-4, in their men's singles match at Court Simonne-Mathieu inside Roland-Garros in Paris on Saturday (local time). This was Kwon's first appearance at the third round of a Grand Slam tournament. The 23-year-old is expected to crack the top 80 in the next world rankings.

June 6, 2021

Chungcheong area hopes to jointly host World University Games in 2027

The Chungcheong region has officially launched a promotion team in hopes of hosting the 2027 World University Games. 　 Daejeon, Sejong, and North and South Chungcheong provinces founded an organization to bid for the games in 2027, and North Chungcheong Gov. Lee Si-jong has been tapped as its leader. Experts who were part of the 2015 Gwangju Summer Universiade Organizing Committee will also be on the 2027 World University Games promotion team, Lee said in a press release. The four communities

May 28, 2021

Natl. women's hockey team player tests positive for COVID-19

One member of the South Korean national women's hockey team tested positive for the new coronavirus Tuesday, a local government said. The athlete, in her 20s, received the positive result while training in Jecheon, about 170 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to the city government. On Monday, she got tested for the virus after being notified that she had come into contact with a COVID-19 patient living in Goyang, just north of Seoul. The national team has been training at a hockey stad

May 18, 2021

Badminton star Lee Yong-dae diagnosed with COVID-19

Badminton star Lee Yong-dae has been confirmed to be infected with COVID-19, his team said Monday. The 32-year-old player tested positive for the new coronavirus on April 23 and entered a quarantine facility, according to the Yonex badminton team. Lee was discharged Monday because he showed no symptoms. He is self-isolating at home and will take a test again this week, Yonex said. He took a test on April 22 after a person who he ate together with tested positive, team officials said. The le

May 3, 2021

Go competition brings professionals and amateurs together

Hoping for the growth of the game of Go, or “Baduk” in Korean, next-generation big data platform company DataStreams and South Korea’s leading English daily The Korea Herald co-hosted the 2021 Pro-am Baduk Competition on Friday. “We put together today’s event to let the world know of Korean Baduk’s high position,” said DataStreams CEO Lee Young-sang. “DataStreams will continue to help expand the Korean Baduk’s status in the world of sports.

April 30, 2021

Natl. wrestling team's COVID-19 cases rise to 22: federation

The number of new coronavirus cases among athletes and the training staff of the South Korean national wrestling team rose to 22, the sport's governing body said Wednesday. The national team traveled to Almaty, Kazakhstan, to participate in the 2021 Asian Wrestling Olympic Qualification Tournament from April 8-11 and the 2021 Asian Wrestling Championships from April 12-18. Twenty-four returned to Korea on April 19, and seven tested positive for the novel coronavirus, according to the Korea Wre

April 28, 2021