Son Heung-min wins fan vote for Korea's top goal in 2018

Son Heung-min's goal against Germany at the 2018 FIFA World Cup has been voted South Korea's goal of the year by fans, the national football governing body said Thursday.The Korea Football Association said Son's goal in South Korea's stunning 2-0 win over Germany in a Group F match in Russia earned 20,448 out of 37,563 votes, or 54.4 percent, to win the top goal honors. This year's KFA fan vote on national football matches was held for 10 days from Dec. 3.Son Heung-min (Yonhap)With South Korea l

SoccerDec. 13, 2018

Korean football clubs looking overseas for coaches

South Korean football clubs are turning their eyes to foreign coaches after overseas managers produced impressive results this past season.Jeonnam Dragons said Thursday that five foreigners have been shortlisted for their vacant coaching job. Jeonnam were relegated to the second division K League 2 after finishing last among 12 clubs in the top flight K League 1.  Jeonnam Dragons (Yonhap)"Our priority is to return to the K League 1 next year," Jeonnam CEO Shin Seung-jae said. "Our first option i

SoccerDec. 13, 2018

Red-hot Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo eyes European career

South Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo said Wednesday he is looking forward to playing in Europe in the future after having a successful season for his club and the national team.Hwang, who plays for Japanese outfit Gamba Osaka, has been showing red-hot form since the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia, where he was the top scorer of the tournament with nine goals in seven matches and led South Korea's under-23 side to the gold medal. He continued playing at a high level in the J1 League and the internatio

SoccerDec. 12, 2018

Improving teen figure skater determined to move at own pace

Fresh off the biggest accomplishment of his burgeoning career, South Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan said Tuesday he's not going to push himself too fast too soon.Cha, 17, returned home from Vancouver, where he captured the bronze medal at the International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final last Friday. Cha became the first South Korean man to reach the podium at the prestigious event.Cha scored a new personal-best of 263.49 points overall to finish behind Nathan Chen of t

More SportsDec. 11, 2018

S. Korea football coach says Asian Cup roster open to all players

South Korea football coach Paulo Bento said Tuesday that his squad for the upcoming continental tournament is open to all players, urging national team members to stay competitive until the final roster selection.Bento called up 23 players in the southeastern port city of Ulsan to train for the 2019 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, which is scheduled to kick off in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Jan. 5.Bento's roster for the Ulsan training camp doesn't feature Europe or Middle Ea

SoccerDec. 11, 2018

All-Star catcher signs mega free agent deal with new club

All-Star catcher Yang Eui-ji, the most coveted asset in South Korean baseball's open market this winter, signed the second-largest free agent contract in league history on Tuesday.The 31-year-old agreed to a four-year deal worth 12.5 billion won ($11.1 million) with the NC Dinos. The Korea Baseball Organization club announced the deal, which includes a signing bonus of 6 billion won. Yang made 600 million won in 2018. Free agent catcher Yang Eui-ji speaks on stage after winning his fourth career

BaseballDec. 11, 2018

Park Ji-sung offers to resign as KFA youth strategy chief

South Korean football icon Park Ji-sung has offered to resign from his post at the national football governing body, officials said Monday.Park decided to step down as the Korea Football Association (KFA)'s youth strategy department chief and the football body is currently mulling over his resignation offer, according to the KFA officials.  (Yonhap)The former Manchester United midfielder took the KFA post in November 2017. It was the first time Park had taken an official position within the KFA.

SoccerDec. 10, 2018

[Photo News] Japanese teen Rika Kihira wins gold in women’s singles at Grand Prix Final

Rika Kihira of Japan won gold in the women’s singles competition at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating held at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre in Vancouver, Canada. Ladies free program gold medalist Japan`s Rika Kihira poses with her medal at the ISU Grand Prix 0f Figure Skating Final 2018-19 on December 8 2018 in Vancouver, B.C., at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre. (Yonhap) Ladies free program gold medalist Japan`s Rika Kihira (center), silver medalist Russia`s Alina Z

More SportsDec. 9, 2018

Korea draw hosts France at 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup

South Korea will play in the opening match of the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, having been drawn with tournament hosts France.South Korea, ranked 14th in the latest FIFA rankings, were placed with France, Norway and Nigeria in Group A for the top women's football tournament at the draw ceremony in Paris on Saturday (local time).  (Yonhap)The Taeguk Ladies will face France, third in the FIFA rankings, for the opening match at Parc des Princes in Paris on June 7, 2019, according to the tournament

SoccerDec. 9, 2018

S. Korean figure skater Cha Jun-hwan wins bronze at Grand Prix Final

South Korean Cha Jun-hwan has captured the bronze medal at the International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, becoming the first man from the country to reach the podium at the prestigious event.Cha scored 263.49 points overall to finish behind Nathan Chen of the United States (282.42) and Shoma Uno of Japan (275.10) at the Grand Prix Final in Vancouver on Friday (local time).Cha set a new personal best with 174.42 points in free skate at Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports C

More SportsDec. 8, 2018

4 Korean referees to take part in 2019 AFC Asian Cup

Four South Korean referees will take part in a continental football tournament next year, the national football governing body said Thursday. The Korea Football Association said Kim Dong-jin and Ko Hyung-jin will serve as referees, while Kim Young-ha and Yoon Kwang-yeol will work as assistant referees at the 2019 Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup. They are four of the 60 referees selected by the AFC for the tournament hosted by the United Arab Emirates in January. This photo provided by the

SoccerDec. 6, 2018

Son Heung-min scores 100th goal in pro career

Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min has scored his 100th goal in his European career, becoming the second South Korean to reach that milestone. Son scored Tottenham's third goal in his club's 3-1 win over Southampton in their English Premier League match at Wembley Stadium in London on Wednesday (local time). With Tottenham leading 2-0, Son redirected Harry Kane's cross in the 55th minute to bag his 100th career goal.This was also Son's fourth goal across all competitions this season. In the

SoccerDec. 6, 2018

Pro wrestler, archer to be inducted into Korea's Sports Hall of Fame

Late South Korean pro wrestling legend Kim Il and former world archery champion Kim Jin-ho will enter the country's Sports Hall of Fame, the national Olympic committee announced Wednesday. The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee said the two athletes have been named as its "sports heroes" for 2018. They were selected among six candidates after a panel of experts at the KSOC's sports hero selection committee evaluated their contributions to sports development and national prestige.  This file photo

More SportsDec. 5, 2018

Former KBO pitcher signs with Diamondbacks: report

Former South Korean league pitcher Merrill Kelly has joined the Arizona Diamondbacks, a report claimed Wednesday.Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports said Kelly, the former ace for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization, has signed a two-year, US$5.5 million deal. The deal also includes two club options -- first valued at $4.25 million with a $500,000 option and another worth $5.25 million.Kelly made $1.4 million in 2018 here. In this file photo from Nov. 12, 2018, Merrill Kelly, then of the S

BaseballDec. 5, 2018

[Newsmaker] S. Korea ‘Garlic Girls’ curling coaches resign over alleged abuse

SEOUL (AFP) - The coaches of South Korea‘s “Garlic Girls” curling team, who shot to fame by winning Olympic silver in February, resigned Tuesday after the athletes accused them of verbal abuse and exploitation.　Nicknamed for their small hometown -- which is famous for farming the pungent bulb -- they were rank outsiders at South Korea’s Pyeongchang Games, and became a media sensation as they swept their way to the tournament final.　But last month they publicly accused their coaches of verbal abu

More SportsDec. 4, 2018

Badminton star embroiled in fake service records controversy

South Korean badminton star Lee Yong-dae has been embroiled in a fake community service records controversy, although he has denied any wrongdoing. Lee said Tuesday that he voluntarily reported errors in his community service records to the Military Manpower Administration last Friday, but refuted allegations that he had intentionally doctored the documents.  (Yonhap)"In the process of registering my community service records, there were some errors in commuting time, service time, name of the s

More SportsDec. 4, 2018

Teen figure skater looking to make history in Canada

Having already made a fair bit of history, South Korean teen figure skater Cha Jun-hwan will try to do more of the same in Canada this week.Cha, 17, will be the lone South Korean representative at the International Skating Union Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Vancouver. The men's short program is scheduled for Friday, followed by the free skate on Saturday.Only the top six skaters from each discipline after six ISU Grand Prix competitions -- men's singles, women's singles, pairs and ice d

More SportsDec. 4, 2018

Ulsan, Daegu vow all-out effort in domestic football cup final

The coaches of Ulsan Hyundai FC and Daegu FC on Monday vowed all-out efforts to finish the season on a high by clinching the domestic football cup title.The two K League 1 clubs will go head-to-head in the two-legged final of the 2018 Korea Football Association Cup this week.The first leg will be played at Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan on Wednesday, followed by the return leg at Daegu Stadium on Sunday. Ulsan Hyundai FC head coach Kim Do-hoon (L) and Daegu FC head coach Andre Luiz Alves Santos

SoccerDec. 3, 2018

K League champions Jeonbuk name ex-Mourinho assistant as new head coach

South Korean club football champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors have hired Jose Morais of Portugal as their new head coach.The K League 1 champions said on Thursday Morais will replace outgoing boss Choi Kang-hee, who will leave for Chinese club Tianjin Quanjian after this season. Jeonbuk clinched their second-straight league title in early October, with six matches remaining on the season. In this photo provided by Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors football club on Nov. 29, 2018, Jose Morais (R), new head coa

SoccerNov. 29, 2018

Top Korean tour star to join LPGA in 2019

Lee Jeong-eun, one of the best players on the South Korean women's golf tour over the past two years, decided on Wednesday to take her talent to the United States.In a statement released by her agency, Crowning, the 22-year-old winner of the LPGA qualifying tournament said she will play on the U.S. tour full-time starting in 2019. (KLPGA)Lee, the 2017 Korea LPGA Player of the Year, won the LPGA Q-Series earlier this month, earning a full-fledged card for the world's premier women's golf tour for

GolfNov. 28, 2018