Korean rookie Chun In-gee finishes 2nd at LPGA major

South Korean rookie Chun In-gee finished second in the LPGA Tour's first major of the season in California on Sunday.Chun shot 11-under 277 to end one shot behind champion Lydia Ko at the ANA Inspiration at Mission Hills Country Club's Dinah Shore Tournament Course here in Rancho Mirage.Chun, who started Sunday one stroke behind the overnight leader Lexi Thompson at nine-under, shot a final round of two-under 70 with three birdies and one bogey.Chun, who won last year's U.S. Women's Open as a no

GolfApril 4, 2016

Pending free agent pitcher signs with Japanese agent

Pending South Korean free agent pitcher Cha Woo-chan has signed with a Japanese agent, sources said Monday, as he eyes a move to Japan after this season.Sources said the left-hander has hired Shigeyuki Mito as his agent. The veteran lawyer has represented two South Korean players who've competed in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, Lee Seung-yuop and Lee Dae-ho, and also worked with the Seattle Mariners outfielder Norichika Aoki when he was playing in Japan.Cha, 28, has been playing for the

BaseballApril 4, 2016

Former world short track champ Noh Jin-kyu loses battle with cancer

Former South Korean world short track champion Noh Jin-kyu died Sunday after a battle with bone cancer. He was 24 years old.Noh's sister, speed skater Noh Seon-yeong, wrote on her Facebook page that Jin-kyu passed away at 8:00 p.m. Sunday.Noh Jin-kyu rose to prominence as an 18-year-old phenom when he won the overall title at the International Skating Union World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in 2011 in Sheffield, England. He finished second overall at the next world championships in S

SportsApril 4, 2016

After much hoopla, Kim Hyun-soo makes Orioles' Opening Day roster

After much hoopla over his playing status, South Korean outfielder Kim Hyun-soo made the Baltimore Orioles' Opening Day roster.Kim got the final outfield spots, along with Nolan Reimold, on the roster announced Sunday as the Orioles are set to open their 2016 season against the Minnesota Twins the following day at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.The decision puts an end to days of speculation over Kim's destination to start the season. After signing a two-year, US$7 million free agent deal last Dece

BaseballApril 4, 2016

Son Yeon-jae wraps up Pesaro World Cup with two silver medals

South Korean rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon-jae collected two silver medals at an International Federation of Gymnastics competition in Italy on Sunday (local time) as she gears up for the Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympic Games.At the season's third FIG World Cup in Pesaro, Italy, Son scored 18.550 points in both clubs and ribbon to win silver medals in each apparatus final. Margarita Mamun of Russia won the gold medal in clubs with 19.100, while Ganna Rizatdinova of Ukraine was the top performer in rib

SportsApril 4, 2016

Cardinals' Oh Seung-hwan throws scoreless inning in MLB debut

The St. Louis Cardinals' South Korean pitcher Oh Seung-hwan tossed a scoreless inning in his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday.Oh walked two and struck out two in the seventh inning against the host Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park in their season opener. The Cardinals lost the game 4-1.Oh relieved starter Adam Wainwright to start the seventh, with the Cards down 3-0, and faced Matt Joyce as his first major league hitter. Oh threw a 93 mph cutter for a wild

BaseballApril 4, 2016

Son Yeon-jae earns personal-best score in individual all-around at Pesaro World Cup

South Korean rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon-jae established a personal best in the individual all-around at an International Federation of Gymnastics competition in Italy on Saturday but failed to grab a medal. Son earned a career-high 73.900 points in total from hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon over two days at the season's third FIG World Cup in Pesaro, Italy. This was 0.350 points higher than her previous best score at the FIG World Cup in Espoo, Finland, in February.Son was fourth after the hoop and

More SportsApril 3, 2016

Fun of baseball not lost on Lotte's Jim Adduci

At 30 years of age, Jim Adduci, outfielder for the South Korean baseball club Lotte Giants, knows he won't be playing the game forever.This understanding of the finite nature of an athletic career is why Adduci, now in his second Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season, wants to have fun while he can."I think people forget sometimes this is a game and it's meant to be played with fun," Adduci told Yonhap News Agency Friday, before the Giants took on the Nexen Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul

BaseballApril 1, 2016

Olympic football seed meaningless to South Korea: coach

South Korean Olympic football team head coach Shin Tae-yong said Thursday it is pointless to talk about the country having a second seed at the group draw.Japanese media have reported that South Korea are placed in the second-seeded pot with Nigeria, Honduras and Iraq for the Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. According to reports, Japan have taken the top seeds along with host Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. Sweden, Fiji, Portugal and South Africa are in the third-seeded pot, while Colombia,

Olympic GamesMarch 31, 2016

Korea won‘t be top seed in final World Cup qualification round

South Korea will not be a first seed in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup as their international ranking next month is expected to be lower than their Asian counterparts. The lineup for the third round of Asian qualifiers was finalized Tuesday as 12 countries have confirmed their spots. South Korea have qualified as the winner of Group G, marking a perfect record of seven wins in the previous round. The national football team has scored 24 goals and conceded none. For

SoccerMarch 30, 2016

Despite subpar spring, infielder predicts postseason for Lotte Giants

The Lotte Giants may have finished with the worst preseason record in the Korea Baseball Organization last weekend, but as third baseman Hwang Jae-gyun tells it, spring ball can be thrown out the window.The Giants went 3-11-3 to finish 10th in preseason, but in Hwang's words, "A preseason is just that, a preseason.""We all have completely different mindsets going into the regular season," Hwang said Monday during the annual KBO media day, held four days before the start of the new season. "Be it

BaseballMarch 29, 2016

Samsung Lions send message, top baseball preseason standings

The Samsung Lions, which fell short of winning their fifth straight South Korean baseball championship last year, topped the preseason standings last weekend, reminding their competition that they could make another title run in 2016.The Lions routed the SK Wyverns 11-1 Sunday to finish first in the Korea Baseball Organization preseason with 11 wins and five losses.The preseason champions have gone on to win the Korean Series the same year on six previous occasions, most recently the 2007 Wyvern

BaseballMarch 28, 2016

Sanctioned pitcher signs with hometown club

A South Korean pitcher serving gambling-related sanctions has signed with his hometown club.The Kia Tigers in the Korea Baseball Organization announced Monday they've agreed to terms on a one-year deal with right-hander Lim Chang-yong. The deal is worth 300 million won and Lim will sign the contract once he returns from his personal training camp in Guam.The KBO slapped the All-Star closer with a half-season suspension in January after he was fined for illegal overseas gambling charges. The KBO

BaseballMarch 28, 2016

Korean slugger Lee Dae-ho makes Mariners‘ 25-man roster

South Korean slugger Lee Dae-ho has made the Seattle Mariners' 25-man roster, an informed baseball source told Yonhap News Agency Monday, a move that gives the 33-year-old his first big league job.The Mariners have yet to unveil their Opening Day roster. On Sunday local time, the M's said Lee had made their 40-man roster and was likely to be added to the team's 25-man roster in the coming days.According to the source, the Mariners have already informed Lee that he'd be on the 25-man roster. Lee

BaseballMarch 28, 2016

Korea beat Thailand to set new shutout win record

South Korea beat Thailand 1-0 in a friendly match on Sunday to set a new national record for most consecutive shutout wins.With nearly 20,000 Thai fans packed at Suphachalasai Stadium in Bangkok, South Korea edged Thailand, thanks to an early first-half goal by striker Suk Hyun-jun. South Korea have now posted eight clean-sheet wins in a row, breaking the previous record of seven set in 1978 and matched in 1989.For the last eight matches, South Korea, coached by Uli Stielike, have scored 26 goal

SoccerMarch 28, 2016

NC Dinos consensus pick to take 2016 KBO crown

The 2016 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season promises to be as wide open as ever: most of the playoff contestants from last season have lost key players, while those left on the outside looking in opened their wallets over the winter.Yet pundits here agreed on one club to rise like cream: the NC Dinos.The Dinos only joined the KBO in 2013 but have steadily improved themselves. They made their playoff debut in 2014 and were eliminated in the first round. Last year, they finished second in th

BaseballMarch 27, 2016

Unified ball, home-plate collision rule among changes for 2016 baseball season

A new season typically means a handful of changes for the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), which, for the 2016 season, has instituted a new rule to reduce injuries on scoring plays and altered scheduling for its championship series.The KBO has adopted a new rule on home-plate collisions to increase player safety. It's intended to eliminate egregious collisions at home, and the rule was put into effect in the preseason.Under the rule, a base runner may not run out of a direct line to the plate

BaseballMarch 27, 2016

Young franchise eyes first title as 35th pro baseball season opens

When English poet Alexander Pope penned the words "Hope springs eternal" in his 18th-century poem "An Essay on Man," the sport of baseball didn't even exist. Yet these words have become synonymous with the start of baseball season, the time of the year when every team, from the defending champ to the returning cellar dweller, starts with a clean slate.And when the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) launches its 35th season Friday, the 10 clubs will take this cliche to a whole new level and brace

BaseballMarch 27, 2016