Russia says final decision on Olympic ban expected Sunday

MOSCOW -- Russia's top Olympic official says he expects a final decision by Sunday on whether the entire Russian team will be banned from next month's games in Rio. The International Olympic Committee is examining the legal options following a report by World Anti-Doping Agency investigator Richard McLaren that accused Russia's sports ministry of overseeing doping of the country's Olympic athletes. Russian Olympic Committee president Alexander Zhukov says "the issue will be finally resolved by t

July 20, 2016

Son Yeon-jae grabs two medals in her final Olympic tune-up

South Korean rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon-jae has captured two medals at an International Federation of Gymnastics competition in Russia, her final tune-up for the Rio de Janeiro Summer Games.Son won the silver medal in hoop and took the bronze medal in ribbon at the FIG World Cup in Kazan, Russia, on Saturday. She has claimed at least one medal at each of the six World Cups she has competed in this season.In hoop, Son finished second with 18.600 points, 0.100 point above the individual all-around

July 10, 2016

Nat'l Olympic body to decide on Park Tae-hwan's Rio status after CAS ruling

The national Olympic body said Friday it will decide on the Summer Games status of banned swimmer Park Tae-hwan after the top sports tribunal hands down its ruling later in the day.At a board of directors meeting, the Korean Olympic Committee said it will wait until the Court of Arbitration for Sport rules on Park's earlier appeal before determining the swimmer's fate for the Rio de Janeiro Summer Games.Park, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist in the 400m freestyle, has filed an appeal at the CAS ov

July 8, 2016

Top sports tribunal announces Park Tae-hwan's appeal against Olympic ban

The world's top sports tribunal announced Wednesday South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan has filed an appeal against an Olympic ban over doping.It's the first official declaration by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding Park's legal battle against the Korean Olympic Committee (KOC). The 2008 Olympic champion in the 400m freestyle already revealed last month that he'd filed his appeal in April.A KOC rule prohibits an athlete from representing the country for three years after the end

June 29, 2016

Chinese-born shooter eyes Olympic glory for Korea

As a teenager growing up in China with an interest in sport shooting, Jang Geum-young likely didn't imagine herself representing South Korea at the Olympics.Yet it's exactly what she'll do in August in Rio de Janeiro, where Jang, now 36 with Korean citizenship, will make her Olympic debut in the women's 50m rifle three positions."I will try my best to win the gold medal," Jang told Yonhap News Agency Thursday at Jincheon National Training Center in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, about 90

June 17, 2016

Korean Olympic body keeps Rio ban on swimmer Park Tae-hwan

The top national sports body decided Thursday to keep its Summer Games ban on swimmer Park Tae-hwan, dealing what may be the final blow to his fading Olympic hopes.In a board of directors meeting, the Korean Olympic Committee said it wouldn't amend its rule blocking Park from competing in this year's Rio de Janeiro Summer Games because of his doping history.The KOC bans athletes who've served doping suspensions from representing the country for three years, starting on the day that their suspens

June 16, 2016

Defender not available for Olympic football

Veteran defender Hong Jeong-ho will not be made available by his German club for South Korea at this year's Summer Olympics, an official from the national football federation said Wednesday.The official said that FC Augsburg recently sent a letter to the Korea Football Association that they will not release Hong, 26, for the Rio de Janeiro Games in August. South Korea have been paired with Germany, Fiji and Mexico in Group C at the quadrennial event."In late May, Augsburg sent a letter that they

June 8, 2016

PyeongChang Olympics organizers set up cybersecurity panel

The organizing committee of the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics said Sunday that its has launched a cybersecurity panel to guard against possible hacking attacks.      The committee said it appointed civilian experts in the cybersecurity field late last week as well as officials from the science and ICT, culture and interior ministries as well as the police so it can guard against and respond effectively to Internet-based threats.   PyeongChang, located 182 kilometers east of Seoul in the m

May 29, 2016

Park Tae-hwan postpones meeting with national Olympic body over Rio ban

South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan on Wednesday postponed a meeting with the national Olympic body over his Summer Games ban.An official with the Korean Olympic Committee said Park's camp asked to put off the meeting indefinitely. The official didn't disclose any specific reason from the swimmer and only said Park's side would get back to the KOC later to reschedule the talks.Park and his representatives were scheduled to meet with the KOC's Secretary-General Cho Young-ho at 10 a.m. Wednesday at

May 25, 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

May 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

May 19, 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

May 17, 2016

Injured gymnast submits entry for Olympic trials

Injured South Korean gymnast Yang Hak-seon has registered for the upcoming Olympic trials, though his status remains doubtful, officials said Friday.The Korea Gymnastics Association said Yang submitted his entry for the May 21-22 national team trials in Seoul. The 2012 Olympic champion in the men's vault, however, is still recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon in his right foot, sustained during practice on March 23.At the time of the injury, KGA officials said rehab would take three to fou

May 13, 2016

Banned swimmer Park Tae-hwan to meet with officials over Olympic status

South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan will meet with representatives from the national Olympic committee over his status for this year's Summer Games, a senior sports official has told Yonhap News Agency.Cho Young-ho, secretary-general of the Korean Olympic Committee, on Thursday said Park will visit the KOC's headquarters in Seoul for a meeting at 10 a.m. on May 25.Park's agency, Team GMP, confirmed that Park requested a meeting with the KOC on Tuesday and heard back from the organization about th

May 13, 2016

PyeongChang formally nominates ex-commerce minister as new chief

Organizers of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Wednesday formally nominated former Commerce Minister Lee Hee-beom as their new president.The PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games made the decision at its executive committee meeting in Seoul, a day after Lee was tapped to replace Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Yang-ho.Cho abruptly resigned Tuesday to tend to pressing issues at Hanjin Shipping, one of the group‘s affiliates mired in debts.Lee will be o

May 4, 2016