Olympic football draws set for April

The draws for the football tournaments at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games will be held in April, the sport's national governing body said Tuesday.The Korea Football Association (KFA) said that FIFA, the sport's top governing body, decided to have the Olympic football draws at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, the host city of the 31st Olympic Games, at 10:30 p.m. on April 14 (Korean time).South Korea have qualified for the men's event, and the women's team will have their qualifying tournament l

Feb. 23, 2016

'Improving' badminton player eyeing first Olympic medal in Rio

At No. 7 in the women's singles badminton rankings with a slew of international victories, Sung Ji-hyun admits she remains a work in progress.   Sung, however, has been improving at a rate that has the South Korean national team camp buzzing with talks of an Olympic medal for the 24-year-old in Rio de Janeiro in August.   She's fresh off a Badminton World Federation (BWF) Grand Prix victory in India last week. During an open training session in Seoul Thursday, Sung said she was pleased to get th

Feb. 4, 2016

PyeongChang now into 'operational phase' two years ahead of Winter Olympics

With about two years to go until the first Winter Olympics in South Korea, the top local organizer said Wednesday the preparation has moved into a new phase.Cho Yang-ho, president of the organizing committee for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games, said the eastern resort town and its sub-hosts are well on their way to a successful Olympics."Construction for all new competition and non-competition venues is on track and will be completed in time," Cho said at a press conference in Seoul. The Pyeon

Feb. 3, 2016

Korea to host world‘s top alpine skiers in Olympic test event

South Korea will host some of the world's top alpine skiers at a Winter Olympic test event during the long Lunar New Year weekend, officials said Wednesday.The local organizers of the 2016 International Ski Federation Alpine Skiing World Cup, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at Jeongseon Alpine Centre in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, will host 58 athletes and 137 officials from 16 nations.The Jeongseon World Cup will hold the men's downhill and Super-G races. It will be the first international c

Feb. 3, 2016

Host Korea to have one skier at Olympic test event

Host South Korea will have one of its own after all at an upcoming Olympic skiing test event.The Korea Ski Association said Friday that Kim Hyeon-tae will be the lone South Korean at the Feb. 6-7 International Ski Federation (FIS) Alpine Skiing World Cup at Jeongseon Alpine Centre in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province. The venue will host alpine skiing during the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, and the FIS World Cup is its first official competition since its opening last week.Only the downhill and S

Jan. 29, 2016

Korea beat Jordan to move within one win of Olympic

South Korea defeated Jordan 1-0 on Saturday to move within one win of a spot in the Olympic men's football tournament.Midfielder Moon Chang-jin's 23rd-minute score stood as the winner at Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha in the quarterfinals of the Asian Football Confederation U-23 Championship. The victory sent South Korea to the semifinals of the competition, which is also the Asian qualifying tournament for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Only the top three nations here will get to

Jan. 24, 2016

Korea defeat Uzbekistan 2-1 to open Olympic football qualification

South Korea defeated Uzbekistan 2-1 to open the men's Olympic football qualifying tournament in Doha on Wednesday.Midfielder Moon Chang-jin scored both goals -- one in each half -- at Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium, as South Korea fended off 10-man Uzbekistan's late charge to claim their first match in Group C at the Asian Football Confederation U-23 Championship.The tournament is also the Olympic qualifying tournament, and the top three countries will advance to this year's Summer Olympics in Rio de

Jan. 14, 2016

Alpine skiing venue ready for Olympic test event

Organizers of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games said Wednesday the alpine skiing venue for an upcoming Olympic test event is ready for competition, awaiting only a final inspection by the sport's international federation.The organizing committee said the Jeongseon Alpine Centre in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, is now ready to host the International Ski Federation Alpine Skiing World Cup from Feb. 3-7 and is undergoing test runs.Jeongseon, some 210 kilometers east of Seoul, will be among the sub-h

Jan. 13, 2016

Banned swimmer Park Tae-hwan to return home from Japan training

Suspended former Olympic swimming champion Park Tae-hwan is scheduled to return home on Saturday from a Japanese training camp with hopes of competing in next year's Summer Games still up in the air, informed sources said Friday.Park, serving a doping ban, began training in Japan in September, after struggling to find proper facilities at home. In March, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist in the men's 400-meter freestyle received an 18-month ban from FINA, the international swimming governing body,

Dec. 11, 2015

At PyeongChang, bibimbap to get gourmet makeover

At first glance, Edward Kwon's "bibimbap" doesn't appear even remotely Korean. His take on the signature Korean dish, which typically mixes rice with vegetables, herbs and red pepper paste, is topped with a sesame tuile, a French-style baked wafer. Instead of plain rice, fried black rice and buckwheat nestle in a puddle of his special sauce combining "gochujang," the said red pepper paste, and mayonnaise.The dish is among 10 fusion recipes Kwon developed for the 2018 Winter Olympics, which will

Nov. 11, 2015

Ex-gov't official named new secretary general for PyeongChang Winter Olympics

A long-time civil servant has been named the new secretary general for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.The organizing committee for the country's first Winter Games said Monday that Yeo Hyung-koo, formerly second vice minister of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, was officially appointed as its secretary general with immediate effect. He attended a weekly staff meeting Monday morning in Seoul."It is a great honor to be appointed as secretary general," he said. "I feel a greate

Nov. 9, 2015

Int'l Paralympic body to sell broadcast rights for 2018 Games in PyeongChang

The International Paralympic Committee will be responsible for marketing the international broadcast rights for the 2018 Winter Paralympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, the event's local organizers announced Thursday.  The organizing committee for the competition said it has appointed the IPC as the exclusive sales agent for the international rights to broadcast the quadrennial event for disabled athletes.  The IPC signed similar agreements with organizers of the 2014 Sochi Winter Paralympics an

Sept. 24, 2015

PyeongChang Olympics organizers release sustainability report

Organizers of the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang announced Thursday they've released the country's first Sustainability Report blueprint for hosting major sporting events.The report, titled "PyeongChang 2018: Opening New Horizons for Sustainability -- Furthering Benefits to Human and Nature," is based on the Global Reporting Initiative, G4, Event Organizers Sector Supplement Guidelines, which deal with the sectors of the economy, the environment and society.The organizing committee said the

Aug. 20, 2015

Samsung heir meets IOC chief over 2018 Winter Olympics

Lee Jae-yong, the heir apparent of Samsung Group, has met with the head of the International Olympic Committee to discuss cooperation for the 2018 Winter Olympics to be held in South Korea, industry sources said Thursday.Samsung Electronics Co., the group's flagship unit, is an official sponsor for the games under its agreement with the IOC that will run through 2020.During their meeting, IOC President Thomas Bach wished for the recovery of Lee Kun-hee, the de facto head of the Samsung empire, w

Aug. 20, 2015

IOC President Bach to visit S. Korea

Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, will visit South Korea this week to meet with sponsors of the upcoming Winter Olympics to be held here, officials said Tuesday.The organizing committee of the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang said Bach will arrive in South Korea on Wednesday for a two-day visit. He will attend a luncheon hosted by Cho Yang-ho, head of the organizing committee, with representatives from the corporate sponsors of the 2018 Olympics also on hand.Bach wil

Aug. 18, 2015

Top organizer vows hard work in PyeongChang Games prep

The top organizer for South Korea's first Winter Games assured international Olympic officials on Saturday that he will put in the hard work necessary for the multisport competition.   PyeongChang, located some 180 kilometers east of Seoul, is preparing for the 2018 Winter Games with Cho Yang-ho, also chairman of conglomerate Hanjin Group, at the helm.   Cho, who took over the organizing committee on July 31 last year after having earlier served as PyeongChang's bid leader, told the Internationa

Aug. 1, 2015

S. Korean Olympic medalists apply for IOC membership candidacy

Four South Korean Olympic medalists have applied for International Olympic Committee (IOC) membership candidacy, the country's top sports body announced Friday.   The Korean Olympic Committee (KOC) said former weightlifting champ Jang Mi-ran, reigning shooting gold medalist Jin Jong-oh, ex-table tennis champion Ryu Seung-min and fencing medalist Nam Hyun-hee have submitted their applications.   The KOC said it will choose one final candidate for a seat on the IOC's Athletes' Commission by mid-Au

Aug. 1, 2015