Athletes sustained 'injuries of honor' at London Olympics

Korean athletes sustained “injuries of honor” at the 2012 London Olympics.

Son Yeon-jae, who finished shy of the country's first rhythmic gymnastics medal, had injuries on her feet, sports officials said Monday.

Netizens said Son’s injuries moved many people. They said her they were in line with her rankings in international competitions.

Son, 18, finished fifth in the individual all-around final at Wembley Arena, scoring 111.475 points combined from hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon routines. She finished only 0.225 points behind the bronze medalist, Liubov Charkashyna of Belarus. Evgeniya Kanaeva of Russia won the gold medal at 116.000 points, and her compatriot Daria Dmitrieva claimed silver at 114.500.

Son was the first Korean to compete in the Olympic rhythmic gymnastics final. She was among the top five in the field in hoop, ball and ribbon, but was only good for ninth in clubs.

By the time wrestler Kim Hyeon-woo competed in the final, his right eye had virtually swollen shut. He said he could hardly see out of that eye but he tried to will himself through the trouble.

Kim won the gold medal in the men's 66-kilogram Greco-Roman division. He edged Tamas Lorincz of Hungary by the period score of 2-0.

Judoka Cho Jun-ho, 24, was no exception. After sustaining injuries on tendons of his right arm in the men's under-66-kilogram quarterfinal, he captured the bronze medal.

In the quarterfinal, Cho had a judo victory over a Japanese opponent snatched away, following the international governing body's controversial overturning of the referees' decision.