Park Tae-hwan reaches 200m freestyle final at swimming worlds

South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan has reached the men's 200m freestyle final at the ongoing world championships.Park squeezed into the final by ranking eighth overall in the semifinals with a season-best time of 1:46.28 at the 2017 FINA World Aquatics Championships at Danube Arena in Budapest, Hungary, on Monday (local time).Only the top eight from the two semifinal groups got into the final, which will take place Tuesday at the same venue.Park ranked fourth in the first group, and had to wait

More SportsJuly 25, 2017

Giants’ manager Bochy: Hwang Jae-gyun’s return to majors ‘strong possibility’

Despite his recent demotion to the minor leagues, San Francisco Giants infielder Hwang Jae-gyun may not have to wait long for his next call-up. When asked about Hwang’s future with the club in a recent interview with MLB.com, Giants manager Bruce Bochy indicated at an eventual return, saying there is “a strong possibility” he will be called back up. San Francisco Giants' third baseman Hwang Jae-gyun dives for a ground ball. (Yonhap)Bochy explained the team’s decision to demote Hwang as one of av

BaseballJuly 24, 2017

Korean pro football All-Stars to face Vietnamese natl. team on weekend

The South Korean professional football All-Stars will take on the Vietnamese national team for a friendly match this weekend as the Korean league hopes the event will expand its fan base in Southeast Asia.The All-Star team of the top-flight K League Classic will face Team Vietnam comprised of under-22 players at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi on Saturday. This is the first time since 2008 in Japan that the K League decided to hold the All-Star Game outside home turf.The K League, operator of

SoccerJuly 24, 2017

Park Ji-sung appointed to advisory panel at football's law-making body

Former Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-sung has been appointed to an advisory panel at football's law-making body, becoming first South Korean to be so named.The official website of the International Football Association Board on Monday showed Park's name on the Football Advisory Panel, consisting of former players, coaches, representatives from FIFA and confederations across the world.Park will represent the Asian Football Confederation with Faisal Al Dakheel of Kuwait at the panel, which

SoccerJuly 24, 2017

KBO batters chase elusive 200-hit mark

Current KBO hits leader, Lotte Giants right fielder Son Ah-seop. (Yonhap)As the summer heats up, so do offenses in the Korean Baseball Organization. And currently the most hotly contested offensive category among KBO hitters is the title of “Hit King.” Additionally, this season hitters are not only chasing each other, but also chasing the elusive 200-hit benchmark. As of July 23, Lotte Giants right fielder Son Ah-seop was the KBO hits leader, with 123. Tied for a close second were Doosan Bears l

BaseballJuly 24, 2017

New natl. team baseball manager wants players to compete with 'pride'

Former All-Star pitcher Sun Dong-yol, named new South Korean national baseball manager Monday, said he wants young players to represent the country with more pride.The Korea Baseball Organization appointed Sun, 54, as the first full-time national team manager. He will hold the reins through the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, where baseball will make a return to the quadrennial competition after a 12-year absence.Sun will make his international managerial debut at the inaugural Asia Professional Bas

BaseballJuly 24, 2017

Injured Korean midfielder to return to EPL club this week

South Korean midfielder Ki Sung-yueng will return to his English Premier League club this week and will concentrate on injury rehabilitation, the footballer's Seoul-based agency said Monday.C2 Global said Ki will depart for the United Kingdom on Tuesday and will join Swansea City. The 28-year-old, however, will focus on rehabbing his right knee before the new EPL season kicks off next month, according to the agency.Ki went under the knife after South Korea's World Cup qualifier against Qatar las

SoccerJuly 24, 2017

Foreign strikers dominant in K League scoring title race

Foreign strikers are dominating the scoring title race for the top South Korean football league this season as locals eye to defend the crown once again.Since 2000, non-Korean players won the scoring title of the first division K League Classic 10 times. South Koreans, however, regained supremacy in recent years after Ulsan Hyundai's Kim Shin-wook, who is now with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, claimed the title with 18 goals in 2015, followed by Gwangju FC's Jung Jo-gook, who is now with Gangwon FC, w

SoccerJuly 24, 2017

Lindblom’s return brings new confidence to red-hot Giants

Josh Lindblom has only just returned to Korean baseball, but his impact on the Lotte Giants, is already unmistakable. Lotte players, fresh off a sweep of the first-place Kia Tigers, have said that team confidence is riding high, attributing it to Lindblom’s return. Lindblom had played for Lotte the past two seasons, but had spent the first half of the 2017 season with the Indianapolis Indians, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Triple-A minor league team.At the end of the season’s first half, Lotte stood i

BaseballJuly 24, 2017

Korean first baseman outrighted to minors by Yankees

South Korean first baseman Choi Ji-man has been outrighted to the minor leagues by the New York Yankees.The Yankees announced the transaction on Sunday (local time) after designating the struggling player for assignment last Wednesday.That left a demotion to the minors or free agency a possibility. Choi cleared waivers -- meaning, no club picked him up after he was designated for assignment -- and accepted a move back to the minors rather than opting for free agency.The Yankees removed Choi from

BaseballJuly 24, 2017

Former star pitcher named full-time natl. baseball team manager

Former star pitcher Sun Dong-yol was named the first full-time national baseball team manager Monday.The Korea Baseball Organization made the announcement to ensure more continuity with the national team operations in a handful of upcoming international tournaments.The KBO added Sun, 54, will remain at the helm through the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.Previously, the KBO had named a new manager for each different competition. Managers of KBO clubs, often the reigning league champions, took on the role, b

BaseballJuly 24, 2017

Korean Kim In-kyung picks up 2nd LPGA win of 2017

South Korean Kim In-kyung has picked up her second LPGA win of the season.Kim rallied to captured the Marathon Classic at the par-71 Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, Ohio, on Sunday (local time), thanks to a blistering 63 in the weather-interrupted final round.Kim had a four-round total of 21-under 263 to beat American Lexi Thompson by four strokes.The 29-year-old, who took home $240,000 in the winner's check, now has six career LPGA victories. She ended a near six-year drought in October

More SportsJuly 24, 2017

Park Tae-hwan ranks 4th in 400m freestyle at swimming worlds

South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan has finished fourth in the men's 400m freestyle at the ongoing world championships.With a time of 3:44.38, Park ended three full seconds behind the champion, Sun Yang of China, at the 2017 FINA World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, on Sunday (local time).Mack Horton of Australia was second in 3:43.85, followed by Gabriele Detti of Italy in 3:43.93.Earlier Sunday, Park had posted the fourth-best time in the heats with 3:45.57.Park, 27, was trying to

More SportsJuly 24, 2017

Giants demote slumping Korean to minors

Slumping South Korean infielder Hwang Jae-gyun has been demoted to the minor leagues by the San Francisco Giants. (Yonhap)The Giants made the move on Saturday (local time), with Hwang having lost his playing time at third base since the return of Eduardo Nunez from the disabled list.The 29-year-old batted .167 with a home run and three RBIs in13 games since getting called up in late June. He homered in his major league debut on June 28 but got mired in a 6-for-36 slump in July.In Triple-A Sacram

BaseballJuly 23, 2017

PyeongChang seeking more sponsorships from public sector

As the countdown to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics reaches 200 days, preparations for the quadrennial competition have entered the final phase.The PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games (POCOG) completed its eighth International Olympic Committee Project Review on July 4. During the two-day meeting with IOC officials, the POCOG discussed its final preparations for the torch relay and athletes' accommodations and transportation, among other issues.Py

More SportsJuly 23, 2017

PyeongChang 2018 venues, infrastructure almost ready to host Olympics

The venues and infrastructure for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games are nearly ready to welcome visitors next year as the organizers are set to put the final touches on their construction projects.A dozen venues -- seven for sports on snow and five for events on ice -- will be used during the first Winter Olympics in South Korea. Six are being constructed, while six other existing venues will be refurbished for the quadrennial competition to take place in PyeongChang and its sub-host cities of G

More SportsJuly 23, 2017

Countdown to PyeongChang Winter Olympics reaches 200 days: host

The countdown to the first Winter Olympics to be held in South Korea will reach 200 days on Monday, with the east coast host city of PyeongChang ratcheting up its preparations and homegrown athletes chasing a record medal haul.PyeongChang, which lies some 180 kilometers east of Seoul in Gangwon Province, won the bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics in July 2011. The competition will be held from Feb. 9 to 25 next year under the slogan "Passion. Connected."PyeongChang 2018 will be the first Olymp

SportsJuly 23, 2017

Head of baseball replay center suspended for incorrect ruling

The head of South Korean baseball's replay center received a 10-day suspension Friday for an incorrect ruling on a home run.The Korea Baseball Organization said Kim Ho-in, director of the KBO's Video Review Center, will be suspended from his duty for 10 days, starting Friday.The decision was reached after the replay center blew a call in a game between the Lotte Giants and the Samsung Lions on Thursday at Munsu Stadium in Ulsan, some 410 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and robbed Lotte outfielder

BaseballJuly 21, 2017

Giants’ Hwang shows off versatility with first start at 1st

Hwang Jae-gyun made his first major league start at first base on Monday for the San Francisco Giants. Hwang is typically a third baseman, but was displaced from his starting role when veteran Eduardo Nunez returned from the disabled list after the All-Star Game break. But Hwang, who made several starts at first base this season for San Francisco’s Triple-A team, made his way back into the starting lineup when regular first baseman Brandon Belt was given the day off for the first game of a serie

BaseballJuly 21, 2017