K League scoring champion on nat'l team snub: 'I have to be better'

SEOGWIPO -- One of the great mysteries in South Korean football in recent months has been the continued absence of Jeju United striker Joo Min-kyu on the senior men's national team. Though he won the scoring title in the top-flight K League 1 last year with 22 goals in 34 matches, Joo has been consistently overlooked by national team head coach Paulo Bento. The Portuguese boss has sidestepped questions about not picking Joo on multiple occasions, saying he doesn't just look at a player's goal t

SoccerJan. 12, 2022

Midfielder wants to capitalize on rare opportunity with senior nat'l team

Gangwon FC midfielder Kim Dae-won is training with the senior men's national team for the first time in Turkey this month. He wants to make sure it won't be his last stint with the big boys. The 24-year-old is one of 26 players called up by head coach Paulo Bento for training camp ahead of two away World Cup qualifying matches. They have been working out since Monday and will face Iceland on Saturday and then Moldova on Jan. 21 in friendly matches. Since this camp isn't part of the FIFA inter

SoccerJan. 12, 2022

Alpine snowboarder Lee Sang-ho maintains World Cup lead despite missing podium

South Korean Olympic snowboard medal hopeful Lee Sang-ho continues to lead the World Cup standings for the season, despite missing the podium for only the second time in his latest competition in Austria. Lee finished fifth in the men's parallel slalom race in the International Ski Federation (FIS) Snowboard World Cup in Bad Gastein, Austria, on Tuesday (local time). In his five previous World Cup races, Lee had collected one gold, one silver and one bronze in the parallel giant slalom, and one

More SportsJan. 12, 2022

Barca youth product Lee Seung-woo seeking more playing time on home soil

SEOGWIPO -- After bouncing around multiple European clubs with little success, Lee Seung-woo, a product of FC Barcelona's famous youth academy, has landed with Suwon FC in South Korea's K League 1 with one major goal in mind. He wants to be on the field more. "The biggest motivating factor was that I wanted to play more minutes. I wasn't getting much action with my other teams, and that's why I decided to come home," Lee said at a press conference Tuesday during Suwon FC's training c

SoccerJan. 11, 2022

Lone teenager at nat'l football camp inspired by Son Heung-min

At the tender of 19, Gwangju FC midfielder Eom Ji-sung earned his first callup to the men's senior national football team for January's training camp in Turkey. The talented teenager stands out for his skills and maturity, but on the other hand, he is no different than most South Korean football players his age in one aspect. Eom is a great admirer of Son Heung-min, the longtime South Korean captain and Tottenham Hotspur star. "He has been my role model, and he is the one player that I'd

More SportsJan. 11, 2022

NC Dinos' manager hoping to survive early part of season with new-look squad

After winning their first Korean Series title in 2020, the NC Dinos missed out on the postseason altogether in 2021. They became the first Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club in 11 years to miss the playoffs in their title-defending season. Then came a massive overhaul in the offseason. The Dinos let their franchise icon Na Sung-bum walk via free agency and either traded or released several others who had been with the club since Day 1 in 2013. And they signed a pair of big-name free agents

BaseballJan. 11, 2022

2nd-year manager for SSG Landers motivated by near postseason miss

Despite losing three starting pitchers to injuries midseason, the SSG Landers came within a game of making the postseason in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) last year. But their manager Kim Won-hyong isn't settling for any moral victories. Dropping the regular season finale to the eventual champions KT Wiz cost the Landers a postseason spot, and the loss still gnaws at Kim, who is now entering his second year as the bench boss. "We missed out on the playoffs after losing the last ga

BaseballJan. 11, 2022

England-based veterans headline S. Korean roster for Women's Asian Cup

A trio of England-based veterans, including the high-scoring midfielder Ji So-yun, will try to lead South Korea to their first continental women's football title this month in India. The Korea Football Association (KFA) finalized the 23-player squad for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Asian Cup on Monday. Ji, South Korean football's all-time leading scorer with 59 goals in 131 matches, will be competing in her fourth Asian Cup. The 30-year-old midfielder for Chelsea FC Women wi

SoccerJan. 10, 2022

Figure skater Cha Jun-hwan headed to 2nd straight Olympics after winning trials

Figure skater Cha Jun-hwan is bound for his second straight Winter Olympics after winning the final national team trials on Sunday. Cha handily won the second leg of the two-stage Beijing Olympic trials in Uijeongbu, some 20 kilometers north of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province. Cha finished with 283.31 points overall, with 185.00 points in Sunday's free skate and 98.31 points in Saturday's short program. Cha had also won the first leg of the trials in December with 239.16 points. He had 522.47 combi

Olympic GamesJan. 9, 2022

Kia Tigers sign ex-MLB pitcher Sean Nolin

The Kia Tigers signed former major league pitcher Sean Nolin on Sunday, filling up their foreign player quota for 2022 with three new faces. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club said Nolin has agreed to a one-year deal worth up to $900,000. He will make $350,000 in guaranteed salary and $250,000 in signing bonus, with up to $300,000 also available in incentives. Nolin, 32, appeared in 18 major league games for three clubs: two with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2013 and 2014, six with the Oak

BaseballJan. 9, 2022

Alpine snowboarder Lee Sang-ho wins World Cup bronze, bolsters Beijing medal hope

South Korean alpine snowboarder Lee Sang-ho has collected his fourth medal in the ongoing World Cup season, further brightening hope of a second straight Olympic podium finish in Beijing next month. Lee earned bronze in the men's parallel giant slalom race at the latest International Ski Federation (FIS) World Cup event in Scuol, Switzerland, on Saturday (local time). Lee defeated Mirko Felicetti of Italy by 0.44 second in the "small final," or the race for third place. Dmitrii Login

More SportsJan. 9, 2022

Veteran outfielder, new GM for revamped KBO club expect big things in 2022

GWANGJU -- For Choi Hyoung-woo, the 38-year-old outfielder for the Kia Tigers, the 2021 season wasn't any fun. But the veteran is confident that things will be far different in the new season. In 2021, the Tigers missed the postseason in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) for the third straight season. And Choi endured his least productive full season as a pro; his .233 batting average, .375 slugging percentage, 12 home runs and 55 RBIs were all Choi's worst numbers since he became an everyd

BaseballJan. 7, 2022

Beleaguered short tracker Shim Suk-hee files for injunction against ban

In a last-ditch effort to regain eligibility for the Beijing Winter Games, South Korean Olympic short track speed skating champion Shim Suk-hee has filed for a court injunction against a ban by the sport's national federation, a source said Thursday. The source, privy to the legal proceedings, said Shim asked the Seoul Eastern District Court on Monday to nullify a two-month suspension by the Korea Skating Union (KSU), which was issued on Dec. 21 last year. The court plans to hold a hearing for

Olympic GamesJan. 6, 2022

New manager for KBO club vows return to postseason

After winning their 11th Korean Series title in 2017, the Kia Tigers snuck into the postseason in 2018 and then missed the party in each of the next three years. And their new manager, Kim Jong-kook, said Thursday he will look to end the drought in 2022. "We have improved our squad with some aggressive investments in the offseason, and I will make sure these efforts will not go to waste," Kim said at his inaugural press conference in Gwangju, the home city of the Tigers located some

BaseballJan. 6, 2022

New KBO season to open April 2

The new regular season for South Korean professional baseball will open April 2, the league office announced Thursday. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) said its 10 clubs will each play 144 games, per usual, starting the first weekend of April. The top five clubs from the 2020 season will host the two-game series on the opening weekend. The matchups are: the Hanwha Eagles against the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul; the Lotte Giants versus the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky

BaseballJan. 6, 2022

4 Olympic figure skating spots up for grabs in final trials Sunday

The four figure skaters to represent South Korea at the Beijing Winter Olympics will be determined in the final national team trials Sunday. The second leg of the two-day Olympic trials will open Saturday in Uijeongbu, some 20 kilometers north of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province. Saturday will feature short programs for the men's and women's singles, followed by free skates for both disciplines Sunday. South Korea has secured two quota places in each of the men's and women's singles. The top two sk

Olympic GamesJan. 6, 2022

Olympic short track champion downplays concerns about medal

Choi Min-jeong, a two-time Olympic short track speed skating gold medalist and a three-time world overall champion, has fallen on hard times of late, leading to rather modest medal projections at the upcoming Beijing Winter Games. But the 23-year-old looked and sounded ebullient Wednesday as she discussed her preparations for her second Olympics coming up in 30 days. "Short track is an unpredictable sport, and anyone can have a shot at winning gold medals," Choi told reporters at t

SportsJan. 5, 2022

PGA Tour's Im Sung-jae looking to crack top 20 in world rankings in 2022

At No. 26, Im Sung-jae is the top South Korean in the men's world golf rankings. And the two-time PGA Tour winner wants to move even higher in the new year. "I will try to take it step by step and stay inside the top 20," Im said Wednesday in an online interview with South Korean media. He is in Hawaii to prepare for the Sentry Tournament of Champions, which starts Thursday, as the first event of 2022. Im reached a career-high 16th in the rankings in February last year but dropped to

GolfJan. 5, 2022

Doosan Bears sign ex-MLB pitcher Robert Stock

The Doosan Bears announced Wednesday they have signed former major league pitcher Robert Stock, pairing the hard-throwing right-hander with the reigning MVP Ariel Miranda in the rotation. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club said Stock has agreed to a one-year deal worth up to $700,000. He will earn $400,000 in guaranteed salary and $100,000 in signing bonus. He can make an additional $200,000 in incentives. Stock, 32, was a second-round choice by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2009 majo

BaseballJan. 5, 2022

2nd-year coach for Ulsan looking to end long K League title drought

ULSAN -- Ulsan Hyundai FC brought in a new head coach for 2021 but ended up with the same result for a third straight season in the K League 1: finishing runners-up to Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. It was a particularly bitter pillow to swallow for the bench boss, Hong Myung-bo, who had his club at the top of the tables in the early going and who, to this day, believes Ulsan were just as good as Jeonbuk. Ultimately, though, Jeonbuk finished two points ahead of Ulsan, 76-74. While Jeonbuk extended th

SoccerJan. 5, 2022