New Sports Stars Edge Out Old in 2007
By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
We are about to ring the final bell on one of the most interesting years in sports in recent memory. In the past 12 months, sports fans, always hungry for new talent, came out stuffed from a full course meal of teenage prodigies heating up the hype machine.
Kim Yu-na, the country's figure staking darling, successfully completed her transition from girl wonder to ice queen, while swimming sensation Park Tae-hwan left skid-marks on the water and emerged as a favorite to bring home the gold in next year's Beijing Olympics.
The year 2007 was also marked by the demise of the 1990s generation of sports stars, who were stalked by mortality, swept under a spell of bad luck, or had their work ethics fail them.
Rising Stars
Kim Yu-na, 17, figure skater:
Kim single-handedly rescued South Korean figure skating from international irrelevance. Kim, currently ranked second in the world in ladies' singles, capped off a sensational year by defending her Grand Prix Final title at Turin earlier this month, which followed her top-place finishes at the Cup of Russia and Cup of China.
Kim's 3-3 record in Grand Prix tournaments in the 2007-08 season is certainly no fluke, but an indicator of her dominant talent. At the Cup of Russia, she set the record for the highest score ever under the International Skating Union judging system for her long program with 133.70 points.
Park Tae-hwan, 18, swimmer:
Park continued to strengthen his bid as the world's best young swimmer and emerged as a top contender ahead of next year's Beijing Olympics.
Park beat rival Grant Hackett of Australia at the men's 400-meter freestyle at the World Swimming Championships held in Melbourne in March, becoming the first South Korean to take the gold at the worlds.
Park also swept three golds at the FINA (International Swimming Federation) World Cup series short-course meet in Stockholm, Sweden, last month, topping the men's 400-meter freestyle, 1,500-meter freestyle, and 200-meter freestyle.
Shin Ji-yai, 19, golfer:
After a series of false alarms, South Korea might have finally found the true heir of golf queen Pak Se-ri. Shin won nine of 18 tour appearances in the KLPGA season this year, and also put herself atop the all-time money list with 1.048 billion won she pursed in 33 career events.
Shin also fared strongly in international events, finishing sixth at the U.S. Women's Open and tying for third at the Evian Masters. Shin's long-drive power and poise ― she won five tournaments this year on the final rounds ― suggest that the best has yet to come.
Lee Keun-ho, 22, football player:
The jet-footed midfielder, close to a no-name before, now presents a strong case as South Korea's No.1 young player thanks to his impressive performances for the club and country.
Lee was one of the few bright spots in the country's disappointing under-23 team that squeezed its way into an Olympic berth, constantly tormenting defenders with his pace and trickery on the left flank.
Lee also scored eight goals for Daegu FC this season, which was most among Korean footballers in the league.
Kim Kwang-hyun, 19, baseball pitcher:
The SK Wyverns lefty was one of the most highly-touted rookies ahead of the 2007 season, but his early struggles had critics wondering whether the kid was ready to contribute on the pro level.
However, Kim rebounded in a big way at the Korean Series, out-pitching Doosan Bears' 22-game winner Daniel Rios in Game 3 that sparked the Wyverns' comeback from a 2-game deficit to win the series in six.
Kim also pitched well for the Wyverns in the Konami Cup series that featured champions from Japan, Taiwan, and the Chinese national team.
Kim, who mixes a 150 kmph fastball with a sweeping curve, will be counted to serve a bigger role for the Wyverns in 2008.
Fading Stars
Korean Major League Baseball players:
It is clear that the world has already seen the best of Park Chan-ho, who is insists on putting up one last fight against mortality as a spring camp invitee for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008.
The 33-year-old former National League All-Star pitcher just pitched one game for the New York Mets and gave up seven runs in four innings, before being released and ending the season with a minor league affiliate of the Houston Astros.
The former flamethrower now struggles to touch 90 miles per hour (145 kilometers per hour) on the radar gun, and his relationship with the strike zone remains platonic.
Park is not the only Korean who is struggling to keep his big league hopes alive. Kim Byung-hyun, who went 10-8 with a 6.08 ERA with three different teams in 2007, is a free agent but is failing to garner significant interest.
Tampa Bay Rays flameouts Choi Hee-seop and Seo Jae-weong aborted their dreams for Major League comebacks and signed with the Gwangju-based Kia Tigers.
San Francisco Giants minor league pitcher Kim Sun-woo is also close to signing with Seoul's Doosan Bears.
Football's ``Golden Generation'':
The sun is setting on most of the players from the country's ``golden generation,'' which led South Korea's impressive fourth-place finish in the 2002 FIFA World Cup held in Korea and Japan.
Ahn Jung-hwan, 31, perhaps the biggest hero of the 2002 squad with two goals in the tournament, seems closer to being gone from the game than to his glory days, pushed at the further end of the bench with the Suwon BlueWings.
Manchester United Park Ji-sung spent more time off the pitch than on it, only recently returning from a knee injury that sidelined him in March. Any loss in mobility could come as costly for Park, who relies on pace and strength as much as any player there is.
Tottenham defender Lee Young-pyo is getting regular playing time with the Spurs, but is widely considered as seat-warmer for Wales teenager Gareth Bale.
Fulham forward Seol Ki-hyeon is failing to establish himself as a first-team regular, despite the team's lack of quality attackers.
Middlesbrough forward Lee Dong-gook, who was left off on the 2002 World Cup squad by Guus Hiddink, is making the Dutch coach look like a prophet.
Lee, who was among the footballers disciplined for going on late-night drinking sessions during the Asian Cup, seems just as clueless on the pitch as he is off it, failing to score a goal in limited appearances for Boro.