Past heroes to attend opening ceremony for FIFA U-20 World Cup

Host South Korea will bring back heroes of the past for the opening ceremony of the FIFA U-20 World Cup later this month, organizers said Tuesday.The top youth football competition will kick off on May 20 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, some 240 kilometers south of Seoul. Jeonju is one of six hosting cities of the 24-nation tournament that wraps up on June 11.Members of the South Korean men's under-20 football team pose for photos at the National Football Center in

SoccerMay 9, 2017

Figure skating hottest ticket for Pyeongchang 2018 after 1st phase of sales

The ladies' figure skating singles final was the hottest ticket for next year's Winter Olympics to be held in South Korea, organizers said Monday.The organizing committee for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games announced the winners of the online ticket lottery on Monday. It said the winners will be informed by e-mail and they have until May 21 to complete their payments.PyeongChang added it took applications for 384,000 tickets, and 162,000 tickets have been allocated for the first phase. Soohora

More SportsMay 9, 2017

Korean football chief earns FIFA Council seat

South Korean football chief Chung Mong-gyu has won a seat on FIFA's main decision-making body.Chung, who leads the Korea Football Association, was elected by acclamation to a FIFA Council membership along with Mariano Araneta of the Philippines and Zhang Jian of China at the Asian Football Confederation Congress in Manama, Bahrain, on Monday. They were each given a two-year term that ends in 2019. Korea Football Association President Chung Mong-gyu speaks during a draw ceremony for the FIFA U-20

SoccerMay 9, 2017

PyeongChang to co-host meeting of int'l sports journalists ahead of Winter Olympics

PyeongChang, the South Korean home of the 2018 Winter Olympics, will co-host an annual meeting of international sports journalists this week, a chance to showcase its readiness to stage the first Winter Games in the country.The 80th Congress of the International Sports Press Association will come to Seoul and PyeongChang, some 180 kilometers east of the capital in Gangwon Province, for a five-day visit starting Wednesday. Soohorang (left) and Bandabi, the official mascots of the 2018 PyeongChang

Olympic GamesMay 9, 2017

Korea beat Saudi Arabia in U-20 World Cup tune-up

PAJU -- The South Korean under-20 national football team beat Saudi Arabia 3-1 on Monday in a practice match for an upcoming FIFA competition at home.FC Barcelona B midfielder Paik Seung-ho scored a goal and set up another in an unofficial match at the National Football Center in Paju, north of Seoul, where the South Korean players have been training for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. The players on the South Korean under-20 national football team train at the National Football Center in Paju, Gyeongg

SoccerMay 8, 2017

Korean volleyball star to choose between Chinese, Turkish leagues for next season

South Korean volleyball star Kim Yeon-koung said Monday she will either stay in Turkey or move to China for next season.Kim, considered one of the world's best attackers today, returned home after leading Fenerbahce to the Turkish league championship for the 2016-17 season. She has been playing with Fenerbahce since 2011. South Korean volleyball player Kim Yeon-koung poses for a photo during a press conference at Incheon International Airport in Incheon on May 8, 2017. (Yonhap)Speculation has be

More SportsMay 8, 2017

Two Korean football clubs hunting ACL knockout berths

Two South Korean clubs will try to claim knockout berths in the top Asian club football tournament this week by winning their last respective group matches.Suwon Samsung Bluewings and Jeju United will aim to grab the round of 16 spots in the Asian Football Confederation Champions League on Tuesday. Two other K League Classic clubs -- FC Seoul and Ulsan Hyundai -- will play their final matches on Wednesday, but they are already out of the contention for the knockout stage.The players of the Suwon

SoccerMay 8, 2017

Park Tae-hwan picks up 3rd title in 1st meet of season

Former Olympic swimming champion Park Tae-hwan has capped off his first competition of the season with yet another victory.Park won the men's 1,500-meter freestyle gold at Arena Pro Swim Series at McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta on Sunday (local time), with the time of 15:06.38.Park Tae-hwan of South Korea celebrates his victory in the men's 200-meter freestyle final at the FINA World Short Course Swimming Championships at the WFCU Centre in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, on Dec. 7, 2016. (EPA-Yonh

More SportsMay 8, 2017

Two-time defending baseball champions continue to stumble

The Doosan Bears, two-time defending champions in South Korean baseball, aren't quite out of woods yet, heading into the second week of May.And what a difference a year makes. After Sunday's loss to the LG Twins in the Korea Baseball Organization, the Bears are 14-17-1 (wins-losses-ties), good for only seventh place in the 10-team league. They're 8.5 games behind the first-place Kia Tigers.On May 8 last year, the Bears were in first place at 19-10-1.Yoo Hee-kwan of the Doosan Bears reacts after

BaseballMay 8, 2017

S. Korean Kim Sei-young wins LPGA match play event

South Korean Kim Sei-young has collected her sixth career LPGA victory at a match play event in Mexico.Kim defeated Ariya Jutanugarn 1-up to take the Citibanamex Lorena Ochoa Match Play in Mexico City on Sunday (local time).It was Kim's first win of 2017. The 24-year-old won three times as a rookie in 2015 and added two more wins in 2016. She took home a winner's check of $205,000.Kim Sei-young of South Korea poses with the champion's trophy after winning the Citibanamex Lorena Ochoa Match Play

GolfMay 8, 2017

Seoul satellite city trying to land pro football club at new stadium

A satellite city of Seoul is trying to land a professional football club at a brand new stadium scheduled to open this fall, its officials said Saturday.Yongin, located some 50 kilometers south of the capital in Gyeonggi Province, is building a 37,000-seat multi-purpose stadium as part of its new municipal sports park, set for completion in November. (Yonhap)And according to city officials, Mayor Jung Chan-min recently ordered his staff to look into the feasibility of hosting a pro football team

SoccerMay 7, 2017

Park Tae-hwan wins season debut in US

Former Olympic swimming champion Park Tae-hwan has won his much-anticipated season debut.The South Korean star captured the men‘s 400-meter freestyle title at Arena Pro Swim Series at McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta on Friday (local time), with the time of 3:44.38.He beat the runner-up, Felix Auboeck of the United States, by a whopping 6.01 seconds.Park’s winning time was the fourth-fastest 400m freestyle record of 2017. Sun Yang of China owns the fastest time of the season with 3:42.16. Park

More SportsMay 6, 2017

Ex-PGA champion Yang Yong-eun eyeing return to US tour

Former PGA Championship winner Yang Yong-eun said Thursday he'd like to regain his full-time status on the PGA Tour in the near future.Yang, who famously held off then-world No. 1 Tiger Woods to capture the 2009 PGA Championship, lost his PGA privileges in 2014.He has spent the majority of the ensuing seasons in Europe and Asia, while appearing in US events only occasionally.Yang Yong-eun (right) hands a club to his celebrity caddie, singer Lee Seung-chul, at the second hole during the first rou

GolfMay 4, 2017

Nexen Heroes acquire ex-MLB pitcher Brigham

South Korean baseball club Nexen Heroes on Thursday acquired former major league pitcher Jake Brigham, a day after releasing another ex-big leaguer Sean O'Sullivan.The Korea Baseball Organization club said Brigham has agreed to a $450,000 deal for the rest of the season. The 29-year-old right-hander has 12 big league games under his belt, all with the Atlanta Braves in 2015, and spent the last season with the Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball.  In this undated photo p

BaseballMay 4, 2017

Asian club football champs looking to regain control of domestic league

South Korean football powerhouse Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors will try to regain control of the domestic league this weekend with a rebound from stunning defeats.Jeonbuk have been one of the elite clubs in the top-tier K League Classic in recent years. Led by head coach Choi Kang-hee, they won back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015.Jeonbuk could have completed a three-peat last year, but they ended up second after suffering a nine-point deduction from the league over a bribery scandal. In 2016, however,

SoccerMay 4, 2017

Valencia's Korean football prospect has big hopes for nat'l team

South Korean football prospect Lee Kang-in, who plays for Spanish side Valencia CF Juvenil B, said Tuesday he wants to become a player who can lead the national team in the future.Lee is one of 26 players selected for the under-18 national football team's training in May. This is the first time the 16-year-old midfielder has been picked to represent his country. He is also the youngest player on the squad called up by head coach Chung Jung-yong.(Yonhap)"I'm really happy because I'm here to play

SoccerMay 2, 2017

Cardinals' Oh Seung-hwan suffers 1st loss of season

St. Louis Cardinals closer Oh Seung-hwan has suffered his first loss of the season, with his scoreless appearance streak coming to a halt at six.The South Korean right-hander gave up three runs -- all of them unearned -- on two hits, including a home run, in 1 2/3 innings of work against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium on Monday (local time) in St. Louis. The Brewers won the game 7-5 in 10 innings, and Oh dropped to 1-1, to go along with six saves in 12 appearances. Oh Seung-hwan of the S

BaseballMay 2, 2017

Dodgers' Ryu Hyun-jin placed on DL with hip injury

Ryu Hyun-jin of the Los Angeles Dodgers has been placed on the 10-day disabled list with a hip injury, a frustrating turn of events after collecting his first win of the season.The Dodgers said Monday (local time) Ryu is dealing with a hip contusion. The South Korean left-hander will be replaced on the roster by right-hander Josh Fields.Ryu earned his first win of the season -- and first since August 2014 -- on Sunday when he held the Philadelphia Phillies to a run over 5 1/3 innings. According

BaseballMay 2, 2017

Korean coach asks players to sacrifice for team at U-20 World Cup

South Korean head coach Shin Tae-yong said Monday that sacrifice is the key to the under-20 men's national football team at the upcoming FIFA competition at home. South Korea will host the FIFA U-20 World Cup from May 20 to June 11 in six local cities. The young Taeguk Warriors are paired with Argentina, England and Guinea in Group A at the 24-team FIFA tournament.  South Korean under-20 men's national football team head coach Shin Tae-yong speaks to reporters at the National Football Center in

SoccerMay 1, 2017

Korean footballers determined to deliver solid performance at U-20 World Cup

South Korean footballers said Monday they are determined to deliver a solid performance at the upcoming FIFA U-20 World Cup at home. South Korea will host the U-20 World Cup from May 20 to June 11 in six cities. The young Taeguk Warriors are in Group A with Argentina, England and Guinea at the 24-team FIFA competition. The South Korean national under-20 football team players and coaching staff pose for a group photo at the National Football Center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on May 1, 2017. (Yon

SoccerMay 1, 2017