Minnesota Twins' Park Byung-ho extends spring hitting streak to 5

Minnesota Twins' Park Byung-ho extended his spring hitting streak to five games on Saturday against the Baltimore Orioles in Florida.Batting cleanup as designated hitter, Park went 2-for-3 at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota, Florida, to raise his batting average to .364 (8-for-22).Park hit two singles in his first two at-bats for his second multi-hit game of spring training. He flied out to center in the sixth and was lifted for pinch hitter Mitch Garver in the seventh.Park is in his first U.S. spr

BaseballMarch 13, 2016

Lee Sang-hwa ends speed skating World Cup season at No. 4

South Korean speed skater Lee Sang-hwa finished her 2015-2016 World Cup season ranked No. 4.The International Skating Union (ISU) Speed Skating World Cup season wrapped in the Dutch city of Heerenveen Saturday with Lee, two-time Olympic champion and world record holder in the 500 meters, absent. She chose to sit out the final two World Cups to rest her ailing knee and slipped from No. 1 to No. 4 in the points rankings as a result.The ISU scheduled two 500m races in each of the six World Cup stop

More SportsMarch 13, 2016

Korean short track legend back home as Singapore coach

South Korean short track legend Chun Lee-kyung has dabbled at many things since the end of her decorated career in 1998 -- TV commentary, ice hockey and even politics.This week, Chun is back on home ice as a short track coach -- not for her native country, but for the one-man team of Singapore.Chun will be coaching Lucas Ng at the International Skating Union (ISU) World Short Track Speed Skating Championships, which will open later Friday at Seoul's Mokdong Ice Rink with the qualifying races."I'

More SportsMarch 11, 2016

World Cup qualifier vs. Kuwait postponed due to sanctions

South Korea's World Cup qualifying match against suspended Kuwait has been postponed, officials said Friday.An official at the Korea Football Association said FIFA has yet to lift its sanctions on Kuwait, punished last October after failing to amend the country's sports law to prevent government interference in the national football body. The two countries were scheduled to meet on March 29 in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in their final match of the second Asian qualifying round for

SoccerMarch 11, 2016

Teenage figure skater captures first int'l title

Teen figure skating phenom You Young captured her first international title on Thursday in Austria.You, 11, won the advanced novice girls' competition at the Cup of Tyrol in Innsbruck with a combined score of 134.75 points after short program and free skating.Marina Piredda of Italy was a distant second at 102.43 points.You, who made headlines by becoming the youngest South Korean champion in January, led all skaters with 88.03 points in Thursday's free skating. A day earlier, she also topped th

More SportsMarch 11, 2016

Star forwards spice up new football season

Familiar foreign strikers and local heavyweights are to battle for the top scoring title in South Korea's first division football league this season, but their closest rivals could lie within their club.Twelve teams in the K League Classic start their nine-month journey this weekend with two-time defending champion Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors again the top dogs, while reigning Korean Football Association Cup winner FC Seoul are considered the top challenger to dethrone Jeonbuk. Fans are also likely t

SoccerMarch 11, 2016

Orioles' Kim Hyun-soo ends drought, picks up first U.S. hit, RBI

Baltimore Orioles outfielder Kim Hyun-soo ended a long drought at the plate to pick up his first U.S. hit and RBI in preseason action Thursday.Kim snapped out of a 0-for-23 funk with a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the seventh against the New York Yankees left-hander James Pazos in Sarasota, Florida.Kim's RBI made it 4-2 Yankees, and the O's scored two more runs in the same inning to draw the game even. It ended in a 4-4 tie.Kim ended the day 1-for-3 with an RBI, and he was also hit by a

BaseballMarch 11, 2016

Former 2002 World Cup star to be national team goalkeeper coach

Lee Woon-jae, a member of the semifinalist South Korean team at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, will join the country's senior national squad as a goalkeeper coach, the national football governing body said Wednesday.After its technical committee meeting on Tuesday, the Korea Football Association announced that Lee, who is currently a goalkeeper coach for the South Korea men's Olympic football team, will serve the same role for the senior team guided by head coach Uli Stielike. The goalkeeper coaching

SoccerMarch 9, 2016

Twins' Park Byung-ho homers for 2nd consecutive game

The Minnesota Twins' Park Byung-ho homered for his second straight spring game on Tuesday in Florida.The four-time South Korean home run king blasted a solo shot off Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Gavin Floyd in the second inning of their Grapefruit League game in Dunedin, Florida.It was Park's second home run in as many games. He launched a grand slam on Sunday and had a day off Monday before returning to action against the Jays.Park's home run cut the Twins' deficit to 5-1, but Minnesota went

BaseballMarch 9, 2016

Emerging striker puts injury behind, ready for fresh start

With the 2016 K League Classic football season looming, Ulsan Hyundai FC forward Lee Jeong-hyeop says a devastating injury is now behind him and he's ready to contribute to his new club.Lee's solid season with Sangju Sangmu FC -- a second-division club of conscripted players -- was abruptly halted last August when he suffered broken cheekbones after jumping into the head of an opponent in a battle for the loose ball. He missed nearly two months of action.Lee completed his military service in Oct

SoccerMarch 8, 2016

Mariners‘ Lee Dae-ho belts first home run in U.S.

Lee Dae-ho of the Seattle Mariners belted his first home run in the United States in preseason action on Monday.Lee hit a solo shot off Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Matt Reynolds in the bottom eighth of their Cactus League game in Peoria, Arizona.Lee replaced Adam Lind at first base to start the sixth inning and took Lind's fifth spot in the order. Then in his lone at bat, Lee took a 1-2 offering from Reynolds over the left field wall to cut the Mariners' deficit to 10-7.He turned a double p

BaseballMarch 8, 2016

Korea miss out on Olympic women‘s football after loss to China

South Korea missed out on Olympic women's football after a 1-0 loss to China in the Asian qualifying tournament on Monday.At Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan, Wang Shanshan headed in the match's lone goal in the 42nd, as South Korea remained winless with two draws and two losses.Though there's one match remaining in the qualification, South Korea will not get one of two Asian spots for the women's football tournament at the Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics in August. South Korea have never competed i

Olympic GamesMarch 8, 2016

Korean Air fires pilot for hampering flight by joining

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's top flag carrier, decided to fire a pilot on Monday for rejecting the company flight order and hampering normal business operations to follow the work-to-rule campaign underway since the "yes" vote for a strike last month, company officials said.   The decision to dismiss the pilot, only identified by his surname, Park, was made earlier in the day by the company's qualification review committee, according to the officials. Park reportedly plans to appeal the d

SportsMarch 7, 2016

S. Korea miss out on Olympic women's football after loss to China

South Korea missed out on Olympic women's football after a 1-0 loss to China in the Asian qualifying tournament on Monday.   At Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan, Wang Shanshan headed in the match's lone goal in the 42nd, as China moved a step closer to qualifying for their fifth Olympics. South Korea remained winless with two draws and two losses.   Though there's one match remaining in the qualification, South Korea will not get one of two Asian spots for the women's football tournament at the Rio

SportsMarch 7, 2016

Co-leaders named for integrated sports body

Co-presidents were named for the integrated national sports body on Monday, another important step toward finalizing their merger later this month.Kim Jung-haeng, president of the Korean Olympic Committee, and Kang Young-joong, head of the Korea Council of Sport for All, were appointed as co-heads of the tentatively named Korean Sport & Olympic Committee. The decision was reached during the KSOC founders' meeting in Seoul.The KOC, which oversees the country's sports in general and elite athletes

Olympic GamesMarch 7, 2016

Coach of football title favorites prefers spotlight on rivals

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors may be the prohibitive favorite to win their third straight championship in the top South Korean football league, but their head coach Choi Kang-hee said Monday he'd rather see rival clubs get more of the spotlight.After a series of offseason moves that added depth to an already strong squad, Jeonbuk -- now dubbed "Real Jeonbuk" after Spanish giants Real Madrid -- seem poised for their third straight K League Classic title.Yet they're off to a rocky start at another major

SoccerMarch 7, 2016

Korean World Cup qualifier vs. Kuwait in limbo

South Korea may not play their last match of the second Asian qualifying round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup this month following their opponents' international suspension, the local football governing body said Monday. The Korean Football Association said that FIFA, the world's top football body, will give its decision by Thursday about whether or not the World Cup qualification match between South Korea and Kuwait should take place at Daegu World Cup Stadium on March 29 as originally scheduled.FI

SoccerMarch 7, 2016

Jang Ha-na reaches No. 5 in world golf rankings after LPGA win

Fresh off her second LPGA Tour win of the season, South Korean Jang Ha-na reached No. 5 in the latest world rankings released Monday.Jang is the second-highest Korean in the rankings after climbing five spots to reach the top five. Park In-bee remained at No. 2.Jang won the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore on Sunday. It was her second victory of the season, and she is the first LPGA golfer to pick up multiple wins in 2016.There are four more South Koreans in the top 10: Amy Yang, Kim Sei-youn

GolfMarch 7, 2016

Host Korea looking to extend short track dominance at worlds

South Korea will look to extend its dominance in short track speed skating when it hosts the sport's world championships this week.The International Skating Union World Short Track Speed Skating Championships will be held from Friday to Sunday at Mokdong Ice Rink in the nation's capital. South Korea is staging the competition for the third time.Choi Min-jeong, a 17-year-old sensation, is the defending women's overall champion and will try to become the first South Korean since Jin Sun-yu (2005-2

More SportsMarch 7, 2016

Toughened drug testing protocols put gov't, sports leagues at odds

When a law giving the government full control of doping tests for all athletes passed the parliament last fall, it was with an attitude of grudging resignation that the professional federations accepted toughened protocols.The Sport Promotion Act came into effect on Nov. 19 on the heels of positive drug tests in pro baseball, football and volleyball. By that time, though, baseball, the nation's most popular sport, had already wrapped up its regular season, and football, the second biggest pro sp

More SportsMarch 7, 2016