Pro football league to discuss postponing season amid coronavirus scare

Faced with the fast-spreading coronavirus, the South Korean professional football league will convene an emergency board meeting later Monday to discuss postponing the start of the new season. The K League announced the meeting will begin at 2 p.m. at its Seoul headquarters. The 2020 season is scheduled to open Saturday with two matches, followed by two more on Sunday. But that could change, as the K League joins several other sports organizations in South Korea grappling with the deadly COVID

SoccerFeb. 24, 2020

Cardinals' Kim Kwang-hyun tosses scoreless inning in spring debut

JUPITER, United States -- The St. Louis Cardinals' new South Korean pitcher Kim Kwang-hyun threw a scoreless inning in his spring training debut on Saturday, giving himself a solid start in the competition for a place in the rotation. The left-hander struck out two and walked one in a hitless frame in relief against the New York Mets at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter, Florida. With the Cardinals ahead 1-0, Kim pitched the top of the fifth inning as the Cardinals' third pitcher of the

BaseballFeb. 23, 2020

Ex-S. Korea captain Ki Sung-yueng leaves for Spain to finalize talks with top-division club

INCHEON -- Former South Korean men's football captain Ki Sung-yueng departed for Spain on Friday to finalize talks with a top-flight club there, looking to continue his pro career in Europe after negotiations with domestic teams fell through. The 31-year-old midfielder left Newcastle United on Jan. 31 by what the Premier League club called "mutual consent." His last Premier League appearance came in September 2019. Afterward, Ki sought a return to the K League 1, where he began his

SoccerFeb. 21, 2020

Pro football matches in southeastern region postponed due to coronavirus

Upcoming professional football matches in South Korea's southeastern region have been postponed due to the spread of the coronavirus. The K League announced Friday that the Feb. 29 home opener for Daegu FC in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and the March 1 home match for Pohang Steelers in Pohang, about 80 kilometers east of Daegu, have been pushed back. They will be played either later in March or in June.   The decision was reached at a meeting of league executives and

SoccerFeb. 21, 2020

Son Heung-min to undergo surgery on broken forearm on Friday: source

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean forward Son Heung-min will undergo operation on his broken right forearm in Seoul on Friday. A source close to the player told Yonhap News Agency on Thursday that Son was admitted to a Seoul hospital earlier in the day, and the surgery has been scheduled for Friday. Son suffered the fracture to the radius in the forearm during a Premier League match against Aston Villa last weekend. Son apparently suffered the injury when he landed hard on the right arm follow

SoccerFeb. 20, 2020

Mourinho sees no bright side for Spurs without Son and Kane

LONDON (AFP) -- Jose Mourinho fears his side's season is running out of gas after an injury-hit Spurs slumped to a 1-0 defeat at home to RB Leipzig in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie. Spurs could be without the talismanic duo of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min for the rest of the season through injury and looked toothless against the Bundesliga contenders.  "We are in a very difficult situation," said Mourinho. "What worries me is this is going to be the

SoccerFeb. 20, 2020

Spurs left hanging by Son's injury: Mourinho

LONDON (AFP) -- Jose Mourinho has compared Tottenham's hopes of having a positive end to the season to hanging from the balcony of a fourth-floor building after losing Son Heung-min to injury. Already without Harry Kane for much of the remainder of the campaign, Mourinho said he does not expect Son to feature again this season after the South Korean fractured his right arm in Sunday's 3-2 win at Aston Villa. Spurs host German side RB Leipzig in the first leg of their Champions League last 16

SoccerFeb. 19, 2020

Son strikes late to edge Spurs past Villa in five-goal thriller

BIRMINGHAM (AFP) -- Son Heung-min struck deep into stoppage time as Tottenham's chances of Champions League football next season were boosted by a 3-2 win at Aston Villa on Sunday. A third consecutive Premier League victory lifts Spurs up to fifth -- which could be enough to secure Champions League qualification with Manchester City facing a two-season ban from the competition -- and within one point of fourth-placed Chelsea. Jose Mourinho's men were worthy of their victory after bouncing bac

SoccerFeb. 17, 2020

S. Korea's Park In-bee captures 20th career LPGA win in Australia

South Korean star Park In-bee picked up her 20th career LPGA victory in Australia on Sunday, resuming her pursuit of an Olympic spot and a chance to defend her gold medal. The LPGA Hall of Famer captured the ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open by three strokes over Amy Olson of the United States at 14-under par. Park shot an one-over in the final round at Royal Adelaide Golf Club in South Australia. She is the second straight South Korean champion this season, following Park Hee-young's victor

GolfFeb. 16, 2020

No 'Plan B' for Olympics; questions over Chinese presence

TOKYO (AP) -- Tokyo Olympic organizers and the International Olympic Committee said Friday there is no “Plan B” for the 2020 Games, which open in just over five months and have been jolted by the outbreak of a virus in neighboring China.     The coronavirus has infected almost 64,000 people globally with  almost 1,400 deaths in China, but only one in Japan where fear is rising with so much attention focused on the outbreak.     “Certai

Olympic GamesFeb. 15, 2020

Tokyo Olympics boss blasts 'irresponsible rumours' over virus shutdown

  TOKYO (AFP) -- Tokyo Olympic organisers stressed Thursday they are not considering scrapping the Games due to the coronavirus and blasted "irresponsible rumours" to the contrary. With only 162 days to go until the opening ceremony, concerns have been raised about Japan's hosting of the Games with the virus spreading throughout Asia. But Tokyo 2020 CEO Yoshiro Mori slapped down such concerns at a meeting with top International Olympic Committee officials. "With regards t

Olympic GamesFeb. 13, 2020

Kim Kwang-hyun works up sweat in familiar colors with new club

JUPITER -- South Korean pitcher Kim Kwang-hyun switched teams this offseason, from the SK Wyverns in his native country to the St. Louis Cardinals in the majors. But both teams use red and white as their main colors of their uniforms. And when Kim donned his Cardinals uniform for the first time in spring training Wednesday, it brought back memories in more ways than one. "I was in full uniform, all the way down to the cleats, for the team meeting before practice," Kim recounted his o

BaseballFeb. 13, 2020

S. Korea qualifies for 2020 Olympic women's basketball tournament

BELGRADE -- South Korea will be competing in the Olympic women's basketball tournament for the first time in a dozen years this summer. South Korea grabbed the third and the final qualifying spot the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in a four-nation competition that wrapped up on Sunday in Belgrade, finishing behind China and Spain. Britain finished in last place as the only winless team. South Korea lost to China 100-60 Sunday afternoon at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in the Serbian capital to finish at 1-2 i

More SportsFeb. 10, 2020

S. Korea beats Britain, keeps Olympic women's hoops dreams alive

BELGRADE -- South Korea has squeezed past Britain 82-79 to stay alive in the Olympic women's basketball qualifying tournament. Shooting guard Kang Lee-seul made her first six 3-point field goals for a team-high 26 points, giving South Korea its first win of the four-nation competition at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in the Serbian capital Saturday. Coached by Lee Moon-kyu, South Korea, world No. 19, nearly blew a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter but held on to beat the 18th-ranked Britain thank

Olympic GamesFeb. 9, 2020

New kits for nat'l football teams unveiled

New uniforms for the South Korean national football teams were released on Thursday, featuring designs inspired by the global popularity of the country's pop culture and by a mythological guardian animal. Nike unveiled the new home and away kits for South Korea, with hallyu, or the Korean wave, the phenomenon of Korean culture's popularity, at the forefront. The home kit is highlighted by a wavy pattern made up of the trigrams from the South Korean national flag, Taegeukgi. The trigrams are a

SoccerFeb. 6, 2020

Son Heung-min stays hot, scores in 4th straight

Son Heung-min has done it again. The in-form South Korean star for Tottenham Hotspur scored in his fourth straight match, converting a late penalty to take his club over Southampton 3-2 in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday (local time) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. With his monthslong drought a distant memory, Son now has 14 goals in 31 matches this season in all competitions. Tottenham took the first-half lead on Jack Stephens' own goal, but Shane Long and Danny Ings sco

SoccerFeb. 6, 2020

S. Korean figure skaters to test mettle against int'l stars on home ice

Budding South Korean figure skaters will go up against some of the sport's biggest stars at an international competition on home ice this week. The Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, organized by the International Skating Union (ISU), will run from Thursday to Sunday at Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul. Skaters from Asia, the Americas, Oceania and Africa -- four of the continents represented by the Olympic Rings -- will compete in four disciplines: men's singles, ladies' singles, pairs and

More SportsFeb. 4, 2020

Tottenham weather Man City storm to snatch win

LONDON (AFP) -- Steven Bergwijn's debut goal helped Tottenham to a remarkable 2-0 win over 10-man Manchester City on Sunday to breathe new life into their challenge for a top-four finish in the Premier League. Jose Mourinho's men had been completely outplayed for the first hour, but were kept in the game by City's profligacy and Hugo Lloris's first-half penalty save from Ilkay Gundogan. However, Oleksandr Zinchenko's sending off changed the course of the game as Spurs scored with their first

SoccerFeb. 3, 2020

Healthy Ryu Hyun-jin heads to 1st spring training with Blue Jays

INCHEON -- Toronto Blue Jays' South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin left the country Sunday for his first spring training with his new club in a new state, confident in his ability to deliver the goods with a clean bill of health. After spending seven years with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Ryu signed a four-year, $80 million free agent deal with the Blue Jays in December. In 2019, Ryu, who led all of baseball with a 2.32 ERA, finished runner-up in the National League (NL) Cy Young Award voting. As a

BaseballFeb. 2, 2020

S. Korean captain to miss Olympic women's football qualifiers with injury

South Korean captain Cho So-hyun will miss the Olympic women's football qualifying tournament this week with an ankle injury. The Korea Football Association (KFA) said Cho has suffered a right ankle sprain and will not compete in the third round in the Asian qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Coached by Englishman Colin Bell, South Korea will host Myanmar at Jeju World Cup Stadium in Seogwipo, the southern resort island of Jeju, at 7 p.m. Monday to kick off Group A action. South Korea wi

SoccerFeb. 2, 2020