By Seo Dong-shin
Staff Reporter
Six South Korean participants garnered precious awards at the New York International Ballet Competition, a biennial competition program of young dancers aged 17-24. The competition ended Sunday.
Ha Eun-ji, 23, scored gold in the women's competition. Ha studies at the Korean National University of Arts (KNUA) and is also a member of the Seoul-based Universal Ballet Company. Kim Na-eun from the same university and company, also 23, won the silver, while Shin Seung-won, a 20-year-old third-year student at KNUA, garnered the bronze.
In the men's competition, Park Kwi-sup of the Korea National Ballet Company, 23, received the bronze, while Lee Young-do, 21, and Jung Young-jae, 23, were given special awards. The three all studied at KNUA.
A total of 54 young dancers from 19 countries, including the United States, Japan, China, Brazil and Russia, took part in the competition. From South Korea, seven participated in the intensive three-week program at Lincoln Center, all making it through the preliminary round.