By Yoon Chul
Staff Reporter
Guus Hiddink, the Dutchman who presided over the Korean national football team during the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup finals, once said the country will get better results in future World Cups if the K-League gets a boost from the enthusiastic support of local fans.
The same truism can be applied to Korean handball players. If the attendance at Saturday's opener at the Jamsil Student Gymnasium in Seoul is any guide, the women's handball team is sure to get a better result at the next Olympics.
The handball match, which was televised, attracted a record number of fans to the stadium and, with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won vowing to build a national handball stadium, the future looks bright.
The Sunday's opener was a source of great encouragement to Korean women handball players.
Normally, South Korean fans watch and cheer handball only during the Olympics. When the Games are over, the handball team is almost forgotten.
Usually, only a few people ― or players' family members ― go to domestic matches, even though the players have brought Korea two gold, three silver and one bronze medals in the Olympics over the years.
But handball players won't be outsiders any more.
At one of the biggest handball competitions in the country, which will continue until March 1, more than 6,000 fans went to the stadium to witness their tough and exciting performance in Sunday's opener.
``I am so impressed today ― there are lots of pure handball fans. The female handball players will get encouragement and they will get better results in the next international matches,'' the Beijing Olympic women's head coach Lim Young-chul said.
During the match, many fans were drawn to the competition between master Lim and his former player Lim O-kyeong.
Lim Young-chul, manages the Byuck San Engineering & Construction team, and the other Lim, manages the Seoul City team. They were, respectively, head coach and a key player of the silver medal-winning team at the Athens Games 2004.
The 48-year-old coach's side beat the 37-year-old's charges 35-30.
``Her team is a very good one. There are a few national team members and some players have experience playing abroad. They didn't just get used to the Korean style. If they are making a good adaptation here, the team has great potential,'' Lim Young-chul said.
Losing head coach Lim also praised her players. ``They played much better than I expected. It was my debut game in Korea as a head coach and I wanted to cheer my players," the world handball star told The Korea Times.
``Today there are lots of fans and it made me very happy.
``Most of all, people who love and support handball should get this chance to be introduced to the exciting sport that is handball.
``In Japan, many people came to the stadium to see the game, and they use going to a stadium as part of building social relationships. The first step to come to the stadium may be hard, but if you come just once, more people will be attracted to handball."
Lim continued, ``Today, many Koreans seek to ease stress by drinking alcohol. Why don't you come here and watch the fantastic game. Handball is definitely as fun as any other pro sports like basketball and volleyball.
``I really hope to make handball popular."
One of the reasons that many Koreans went to the stadium to watch the game was thanks to the financial support by the new Korea Handball Federation (KHF) president, SK Group Chairman Chey.
Chey has attempted to advertise the sport and also succeeded in securing public broadcasting. Of course, he has already vowed to build a new stadium, a pledge made when he was elected the president.
He gave his word again during the season opener.
``I will invest a lot to support handball as well as building a handball stadium,'' said Chey.
Handball plays a prominent role in South Korea's Olympic history.
Since the country participated in its first at the London Olympics in 1948, many athletes have produced admirable performances.
One of the most memorable stories has come from handball players.
The women's team grabbed a gold medal in two consecutive competitions at the Seoul Games in 1988 and Barcelona in 1992, both over Norway, while the men's team grabbed silver in 1988.
The women, who earned silver at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, then produced dramatic moments in the final against Denmark in Athens in 2004.
The aging Koreans, small in height, battled hard with their younger and stronger norh-European opponents. With both unable to find a winner at the end of two overtimes, they were forced to settle the contest by way of a shoot-out.
During this long match, the Koreans ultimately had to be content with silver.
For last year's Games in Beijing, the national team mobilized both young and old players, including then 35-year-olds Oh Seong-gok and Oh Yong-ran, but also then 19-year-old Kim On-a in a bid to reclaim some fame for their country.
Unfortunately, they lost out to Norway at the end of an unacceptable judgment in the semifinal, when the referee allowed a goal for the Scandinavians in the dying seconds of the match, but video evidence appeared to show that the ball had crossed the line after the time was up. But the suffering players touched Korean hearts once again as they grabbed the bronze medal by beating Hungary.