Designs for PyeongChang 2018 tickets unveiled; offline sales to commence in Nov.

Tickets designs for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics were unveiled Sunday, while offline ticket sales are set to commence in November.The organizing committee for the first Winter Games in South Korea said tickets will feature stylized representations of the appropriate sport, with images of snowflakes in the shape of the Korean alphabet, Hangeul, in the background.(Yonhap)The tickets will each have a hologram, a barcode, the name of the purchaser and other security features to reduce the ri

More SportsOct. 29, 2017

More than 9,000 PyeongChang Paralympics tickets sold domestically: organizers

Local organizers of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Paralympics announced Saturday they've so far sold more than 9,000 tickets domestically, refuting earlier data released by a lawmaker who said only 0.2 percent of available tickets were purchased in South Korea. The PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games (POCOG) said in a statement that 9,401 tickets were sold in South Korea for the PyeongChang Paralympics as of Tuesday, which is equivalent to 4.3 percent of

Olympic GamesOct. 29, 2017

Kia Tigers take Korean Series lead with road victory

The Kia Tigers defeated the Doosan Bears 6-3 on the road Saturday to move ahead in the Korean Series.The Tigers' offense cashed in on early opportunities to back solid start by left-hander Pat Dean at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, and now lead the best-of-seven Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) championship series two games to one.Then with the Tigers nursing a 4-3 lead in the top ninth, Na Ji-wan smacked a pinch-hit, two-run home run for some insurance.Tigers' Na Ji-wan celebrates after hitting a tw

BaseballOct. 28, 2017

KEPCO, state utility firms vow sponsorship for PyeongChang 2018

State-run public utility firm Korea Electric Power Corp., and other public utility corporations, offered support to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics by signing a sponsorship deal and by providing related infrastructure.In August, KEPCO inked a sponsorship deal to become the first public firm to support the Winter Olympics.As a "Tier One" partner, KEPCO reserves a wide range of marketing rights, including the use of intellectual property and right to the PyeongChang's logo in their advertisin

More SportsOct. 27, 2017

Korean horse racing body imported more than 4,000 horses in last 10 yrs: lawmaker

South Korea's sole horse racing authority has imported more than 4,000 horses in the last 10 years, while exporting only 15 horses during that period, a lawmaker said Friday.According to  Rep. Wi Seong-gon of the ruling Democratic Party, the Korea Racing Authority spent 196.3 billion won ($173 million) to import 4,395 horses from 2007 to 2016. In 2014, the KRA bought 603 horses from overseas at a cost of 27.5 billion won. By type, 2,913 were racing horses, while 1,482 were breeding horses. This

More SportsOct. 27, 2017

2 American hurlers set to duel in crucial Korean Series game

Two American pitchers are set to duel in a crucial game in the ongoing South Korean baseball championship series this weekend.The Kia Tigers and the Doosan Bears are knotted at one game apiece in this best-of-seven championship final in the Korea Baseball Organization. The Bears took Wednesday's opener 5-3, and the Tigers responded with a 1-0 victory behind starter Yang Hyeon jong's complete game shutout.First-year left-hander Pat Dean will have a tough act to follow when he takes the mound for

BaseballOct. 27, 2017

Host Korea eyes top-10 finish at 2018 PyeongChang Paralympics

ICHEON, South Korea -- South Korean athletes on Thursday vowed to achieve a top-10 finish at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Paralympics with the country's first-ever gold medal at the multi-winter sport event for the disabled.The South Korean delegation for the 2018 Paralympics was launched at Icheon Training Center in Icheon, some 80 kilometers south of Seoul, attended by about 200 guests including Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Do Jong-hwan. "I'm proud of all of you to overcome a time of

More SportsOct. 26, 2017

American slugger feels 'zero frustration' over postseason benching

GWANGJU -- The two-time defending South Korean baseball champions Doosan Bears boast such a deep lineup that Nick Evans, who has hit 51 homers over the past two regular seasons, has often found himself on the bench in the ongoing postseason.But the situation doesn't bother the slugger one bit, because the Bears are working on a four-game postseason winning streak."There's zero frustration on my part," Evans said Thursday before Game 2 of the Korean Series, the championship final in the Korea Bas

BaseballOct. 26, 2017

Veteran ace sticks to same routine in postseason

For Doosan Bears right-hander Dustin Nippert, postseason games in the Korea Baseball Organization are no different than regular season contests.Of course, there's a lot more at stake in October than in, say, May. But at least Nippert is telling himself that they're all the same, in hopes of keeping some pressure off his shoulders.The strategy just might have worked Wednesday in Game 1 of the Korean Series against the Kia Tigers. Nippert held the Tigers to three runs in six solid innings, as the

BaseballOct. 26, 2017

South Korean Olympic organizers downplay concern over N. Korea

ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece -- South Korea's Olympic organizers played down concern over ongoing tensions with North Korea on Monday and also said that work has been completed on all venues for the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.Lee Hee-beom, president of the Pyeongchang organizing committee, said the International Olympic Committee has made it very clear that the Feb. 9-25 games will go ahead as scheduled."There is no Plan B," Lee said, speaking at the birthplace of the ancient Olympics shortly after the l

More SportsOct. 25, 2017

Olympic flame for PyeongChang 2018 lit in Greece

OLYMPIA, Greece -- The flame that will burn during the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games was lit at the birthplace of the ancient Olympics on Tuesday, marking a symbolic start of the torch relay that will involve thousands of people around the globe.With the first Winter Olympics in South Korea 108 days away, the flame for the PyeongChang Games was born at the Temple of Hera in Olympia, Greece, using a backup flame due to rain. It was the first time since the lighting ceremony for the 2000 Sydney Su

More SportsOct. 24, 2017

Managers, players throw down gauntlet ahead of baseball championship series

GWANGJU -- Ahead of South Korean baseball's championship series, managers and players for the two finalists threw down the gauntlet Tuesday.The 2017 Korean Series, the championship final for the Korea Baseball Organization, will open Wednesday as the Kia Tigers host the Doosan Bears at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju 330 kilometers south of Seoul.The Tigers were the regular season champions who earned the bye to the Korean Series. The Bears, who finished in second place, knocked out the N

BaseballOct. 24, 2017

2 ex-major league pitchers to start opener of baseball championship series

GWANGJU -- Two former major league pitchers will start the opening game of the South Korean baseball championship series this week.The Kia Tigers will host the Doosan Bears to open the Korean Series, the championship final in the Korea Baseball Organization, Wednesday at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, some 330 kilometers south of Seoul. To start the best-of-seven series, the Tigers will hand the ball to Dominican right-hander Hector Noesi, who went 20-5 with a 3.48 ERA in the regular se

BaseballOct. 24, 2017

Former Olympic rivals happy to be reunited as athlete, coach for Korea

They were once battling each other for Olympic speed skating medals, but now, Lee Seung-hoon of South Korea and Bob de Jong of the Netherlands are chasing a common goal as athlete and coach -- to win medals for host South Korea at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games.Lee was the shock gold medalist in the men's 10,000m at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games, where de Jong claimed the bronze. Turn the clock forward more than seven years, and de Jong is now the South Korean national team coach and Lee on

More SportsOct. 24, 2017

Speed skating star confident of beating rival in PyeongChang

South Korean speed skating star Lee Sang-hwa said Tuesday she's confident of beating her emerging rival from Japan at next year's Winter Olympics on home ice.Lee is the two-time defending Olympic gold medalist in the women's 500m, and is the current world record holder with 36.36 seconds. But she suffered through an injury-plagued 2016-2017 season, and was nipped by Nao Kodaira of Japan at the International Skating Union World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships in February.The event wa

More SportsOct. 24, 2017

S. Korean football technical director grilled in parliamentary audit over Hiddink issue

DAEJEON (Yonhap) -- South Korean football technical director Kim Ho-gon was grilled by lawmakers in a parliamentary audit session Monday over national team coaching issues regarding Guus Hiddink.South Korean football technical director Kim Ho-gon. YonhapKim, who leads the Korea Football Association (KFA)'s technical committee, was called to the witness stand for the National Assembly's Education, Culture, Sports, and Tourism Committee audit session at Chungnam National University in Daejeon and

SoccerOct. 23, 2017

Korea to host Nov. football friendlies in Suwon, Ulsan

South Korea's football governing body confirmed Monday the venues for the national team's two friendly matches at home next month.The Korea Football Association said the men's national football team will take on Colombia at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, 46 kilometers south of Seoul, on Nov. 10, and they will host Serbia at Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, about 410 kilometers southeast of the capital, on Nov. 14. Both matches will start at 8 p.m.  In this file photo taken Oct. 6, 2016, South

SoccerOct. 23, 2017

LPGA legend Sorenstam hails 'amazing work ethic' of Korean players

Women's golf legend Annika Sorenstam on Monday hailed the "amazing work ethic" of South Korean players, who've dominated the LPGA Tour in 2017.Sorenstam is visiting Seoul in promotion of Pacific Links International, an international golf membership company that announced the launching of its Korean service Monday.Sorenstam, a World Golf Hall of Famer with 72 LPGA wins and 10 majors to her credit, is uniquely positioned to comment on the excellence of South Korean players. In the late 1990s, she

GolfOct. 23, 2017

Latest LPGA champion soars in world rankings

South Korean golfer Ji Eun-hee, the latest LPGA champion, made a huge jump in the latest world rankings Monday.Ji soared 30 spots to reach No. 42 in the rankings on the strength of her victory at the Swinging Skirts LPGA Taiwan Championship in Taipei on Sunday. It was her first LPGA win in eight years.There were no changes at the top, with South Koreans Ryu So-yeon and Park Sung-hyun staying at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. In this EPA photo taken Oct. 22, 2017, Ji Eun-hee of South Korea holds

GolfOct. 23, 2017

Korean PM optimistic about successful Olympic flame lighting despite rain forecast

ATHENS -- South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said Monday he expects successful lighting of the Olympic flame for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games despite rain forecast. The Olympic flame lighting ceremony for PyeongChang Games will take place at the Temple of Hera in Olympia, Greece, on Tuesday. Following the tradition, the Olympic flame will be lit by the sun's rays using a parabolic mirror at noon, but the local weather forecast showed there's an 80 percent chance of rain on the ceremony

More SportsOct. 23, 2017