By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
Lim Young-chul, the Korean women's handball coach, called a timeout roughly one minute before the end of the match with Hungary at the Beijing Olympic Games, Saturday.
Korea was leading the game 33-27, almost in sight of the bronze medal. However, he called the timeout and replaced nearly all members with senior players.
Lim called their names one by one, and told them to finish the game, also telling the juniors to understand him.
It was careful consideration for the older players, for whom the match was to be their last at the Olympic Games. It was the last thing the coach could do for his players whose dreams of the gold medal were shattered following a controversial goal by Norway during Thursday's semifinal.
``I know that calling a timeout in the last minute of a game is against fair play, and I have never done it before. However, I had a reason today. Those of my players who are old, had gone through hard training, and cannot play at the next Olympic Games. So I wanted to give them a last chance,'' Lim said after the game.
Korea claimed Olympic golds in 1988 and 1992 and a silver in Athens in 2004 after conceding a narrow overtime defeat to Denmark. With an average age of 34.7, the Korean team has retained the core of the squads it sent to Sydney and Athens.
Lim has spent about a decade with them, as assistant coach at Sydney and head coach since Athens. Despite hard training and his stern attitude to players, he is known to be thoughtful. In a movie ``Forever the Moment'' which featured the final at Athens, the coach in the film remembers the anniversary of the death of a player's mother and the first birthday of another player's baby. Players say it is the image of Lim.
Not only the players but also Lim has had a hard time with the nation's lack of support for the sport. He also lost his father last month, and could not be present at his father's deathbed because of training commitments.
He said the bronze medal was more precious than a gold, as the medal has the players' passion and spirit in it.
``Now the old players will retire. But I don't worry about the future of Korean women's handball, as every player will do her best with a strong fighting spirit,'' Lim said.
Despite good coaching, it is unlikely that Lim will once again try for gold at the next Olympic Games. ``I feel empty after every match. I train players so hard, sometimes with harsh treatment, and after the game finishes, I regret it. I don't want to do it anymore,'' he said.