Two Korean clubs chasing quarterfinals berths at AFC Champions League

Two Korean clubs will be chasing quarterfinals berths at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League this week after failing to pick up victories in the opening legs of the round of 16.Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors will host Melbourne Victory at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. The two played to a 1-1 draw last week in Australia.With an away goal in the bag, Jeonbuk can advance to the quarters for the second straight year with at least a scoreless

SoccerMay 23, 2016

Taekwondo: Brother of Brussels bomber wins European title

MONTREUX, Switzerland (AFP) – Belgian Mourad Laachraoui, the younger brother of one of the Brussels airport bombers, has won gold in the European Taekwondo Championships and will compete in this summer's Olympics. Mourad Laachraoui, brother of Najim Laachraoui, beat Spaniard Jesus Tortosa 6-3 in the -54kg final in Montreux, Switzerland on Thursday night.A silver medalist at the Summer Universiades in 2015, the 21-year-old has qualified for the Rio Games in August.Najim Laachraoui, 24, was one of

More SportsMay 20, 2016

Mascot for PyeongChang Olympics to be unveiled in June

The mascot for 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics is likely to be unveiled in June after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) meeting, an official from the event's organizing committee said Friday. The official, who asked not to be named, said that the mascot for South Korea's first ever Winter Games will be determined at the IOC's Executive Board meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, which runs from June 1-3. Lee Hee-beom, newly elected president of the PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2

Olympic GamesMay 20, 2016

Korean national judo team targets at least two golds in Rio

Korean national judo team aims to collect at least two gold medals at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Games, sources at the Korea Judo Association (KJA) said Thursday.Korea, the world No. 3 in the Olympic judo medal rankings with 11 gold, 14 silver and 15 bronze medals, will have 12 judokas -- seven men and five women --- in Brazil. This is the first time since the 2004 Athens Olympics that the country failed to send judokas in all weight divisions. In Rio, there will be no South Koreans competin

Olympic GamesMay 19, 2016

Korea, Indonesia seek better cooperation in sports after MOU

Korea and Indonesia will bolster cooperation in sports as they signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) this week following a summit between two countries. The Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism confirmed Thursday that it has signed the MOU with Indonesia's Ministry of Youth and Sports after President Park Geun-hye and her Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo held a summit at Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office. The two sides on Monday signed 11 MOUs in areas like infras

More SportsMay 19, 2016

Lee Se-dol to leave Korean pro Go players association

Korean Go master Lee Se-dol, who is known for having faced Google's artificial intelligence (AI) program AlphaGo in the ancient board game, has decided to withdraw from the local professional Go players' association, apparently feeling uncomfortable about how much of a cut of his prize money they take.It turns out that Lee, a ninth-dan player who turned pro at the age of 12, has already submitted a withdrawal letter to Yang Kun, the head of the Korean pro Go players' association, on Tuesday, alo

More SportsMay 19, 2016

Korea confirms schedule of int'l football event for Olympics

Korea will play Nigeria first in an international football tournament created as a warm-up for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics, the national football governing body said Wednesday.The Korea Football Association (KFA) said that South Korea will host Nigeria at the four-nation invitational tournament on June 2 at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. The men's under-23 football team will then face Honduras on June 4 at Goyang Stadium in Goyang, north of Seoul. They will wrap

SoccerMay 18, 2016

Ex-World Cup stars named honorary ambassadors for U-20 tournament

Two former South Korean football stars were appointed honorary ambassadors for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup on Wednesday. The organizing committee of the U-20 World Cup unveiled Park Ji-sung and Ahn Jung-hwan as new goodwill ambassadors for South Korea's first hosting of the FIFA tournament since 2007. The U-20 World Cup, which features 24 nations, will be played from May 20 to June 11, 2017, in Cheonan, Daejeon, Incheon, Jeju, Jeonju and Suwon. Park and Ahn are considered South Korean football

SoccerMay 18, 2016

Nat'l Olympic chief hopes to see banned swimmer in Rio

The head of the national Olympic body said Tuesday he hopes to see banned swimmer Park Tae-hwan race at this year's Summer Games, even as his own organization is barring Park from the competition because of a doping history."To give you my personal opinion, I think it'd be great if Park Tae-hwan could go to the Olympics," said Kim Jung-haeng, president of the Korean Olympic Committee, at a luncheon with former South Korean chief delegates to the Olympics.Kim added that he feels that way because

Olympic GamesMay 17, 2016

Struggling baseball club releases American pitcher

Struggling South Korean baseball club Samsung Lions released their American starter Collin Balester on Tuesday.The 29-year-old became the first foreign player to be ousted from the Korea Baseball Organization in 2016, after going 0-3 with a 8.03 ERA in three starts in his first season here. The right-hander gave up 20 hits and 12 walks in just 12 1/3 innings while striking out only five.He came down with a right elbow strain last month and had been rehabbing with the Lions' minor league club.For

BaseballMay 17, 2016

Korean footballers in Europe end seasons with regrets

South Korean footballers in Europe have wrapped up their seasons with regrets, as most of them failed to make strong impressions on their fans and coaches alike.The major European football leagues completed their 2015-16 campaigns over the weekend, and South Korean footballers in the English Premier League and the German Bundesliga closed their seasons with a mixed bag of performances.Koo Ja-cheol of FC Augsburg enjoyed the most impressive performance. The 27-year-old midfielder, who joined Augs

SoccerMay 17, 2016

Angels' Choi Ji-man headed to minors after clearing waivers

Struggling South Korean infielder Choi Ji-man has accepted an assignment to the minors in the Los Angeles Angels system after clearing waivers, reports said Monday.The Angels designated Choi for assignment last Wednesday to make room on their 40-man roster for pitcher Jhoulys Chacin, acquired in a trade with the Atlanta Braves. He will now resume his season with the Angels' Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake City.Choi, 24, joined the Angels via the Rule 5 Draft in December, after signing a minor le

BaseballMay 16, 2016

Injured Korean big leaguers enjoy solid rehab stints

Two injured South Korean major leaguers had solid rehab stints on Sunday in the United States as they eye a return to the big league lineup.Los Angeles Dodgers' left-hander Ryu Hyun-jin tossed two shutout innings in his first minor league rehab appearance. Ryu, who underwent a shoulder surgery last May and missed the entire 2015 season, pitched for the Dodgers' Single-A affiliate, the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, where he allowed one hit and struck out two against the Inland Empire 66ers, the Single

BaseballMay 16, 2016

Pirates' Kang Jung-ho hits 4th homer of season

Kang Jung-ho of the Pittsburgh Pirates belted his fourth home run of the season in a road win over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday (local time).Batting sixth and playing third base, Kang launched a solo shot off Hector Rondon to left center with one out in the top of the ninth at Wrigley Field. The blast put the Bucs up 2-0, and they held on to win 2-1.The Cubs cut the deficit in half with a run in the bottom of the ninth against closer Mark Melancon but stranded a man at second to fall by a run.Kang

BaseballMay 16, 2016

Park Tae-hwan has no legal grounds to take Olympic ban appeal to sports tribunal: official

South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan has no legal grounds to take his Olympic ban appeal to the world's top sports tribunal, a national sports official said Sunday.Park on April 26 filed an appeal for arbitration at the Court of Arbitration for Sport against a Korean Olympic Committee rule barring him from competing at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics based on his doping history. Two days later, he asked that the procedure be put on hold so that he could speak to the KOC one last time befor

More SportsMay 16, 2016

Korean Wang Jeung-hun wins 2nd straight European Tour event

South Korean golfer Wang Jeung-hun captured his second straight European Tour win Sunday in Mauritius, powered by a dramatic late rally.Wang shot an even-par 72 in the final round of the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open at Four Seasons Golf Club at Anahita, for the four-round total of six-under 282. He edged out Siddikur Rahman of Bangladesh by one stroke.This was Wang's second career European Tour win and also his second in as many starts. He won the Trophee Hassan II in Morocco last week.The 20-yea

GolfMay 16, 2016

Golfer Shin Ji-yai wins out on Japanese tour over her compatriots

South Korean golfer Shin Ji-yai collected her second win of the season on Sunday after winning the Hoken No Madoguchi Ladies in Japan. At the Fukuoka Country Club in Fukuoka, Japan, Shin shot four-under 68 to finish the tournament with a final score of 10-under 206. She beat her compatriots Lee Bo-mee and Kim Ha-neul by two strokes to take the 216 million yen prize purse. Lee was the two-time defending champion of the event.Shin, former world No. 1 golfer, now has two wins this season after her

GolfMay 15, 2016

Cardinals' Oh Seung-hwan tosses 1 1/3 shutout innings vs. Dodgers

Oh Seung-hwan of the St. Louis Cardinals tossed 1 1/3 shutout innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday (local time), further reinforcing his status as a reliable relief pitcher. Oh took the mound as the team's third pitcher in the top seventh at Dodger Stadium, with the Cardinals trailing 5-1. The South Korean righty collected two strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings, lowering his ERA from 1.47 to 1.37. However, Oh saw his team getting beaten by the Dodgers 5-3 in the end. Oh has now allowed t

BaseballMay 15, 2016