Third-time Olympian Choi Min-jeong ready to lead short track team to glory in Italy

Korean short track speed skater Choi Min-jeong talks to reporters at Incheon International Airport, Friday, before departing for Italy for the Winter Olympics. Yonhap

As the captain of the national short track speed skating team and also the entire

Korean delegation at the upcoming Winter Olympics, Choi Min-jeong said Friday she is ready to lead her squad to glory in Italy.

Choi won five medals over the past two editions of the Winter Olympics, including three gold medals, and one more medal at the Milan-Cortina Games will pull her into a tie with three others for the most Olympic medals won by a Korean athlete.

"This is already my third Olympics, and it's an honor to be able to compete at an event with so much at stake," Choi told reporters at Incheon International Airport, before departing for Italy. "I will try to enjoy the experience as much as I can."

In addition to captaining the short track team, Choi was recently named to the same role for the whole delegation, a role she isn't taking lightly.

"I will try to do my part as responsibly as I can," she said. "It'd be great if both the short track team and the rest of our delegation can post strong results. I am often inspired by great athletes in other sports, and I will be cheering for them from afar this time, too."

Choi's first two Olympics all happened in Asia — on home ice in 2018 and in China in 2022 — and she said she will have to pay particular attention to how she can overcome her jetlag quickly.

Korean short track speed skater Rim Jong-un arrives at Incheon International Airport, Friday, to travel to Italy for the Winter Olympics. Yonhap

"My primary goal is to demonstrate and execute all the things I've worked on," she said. "And my teammates and I are really excited about relay events, and hopefully, we can all do well there."

One of Choi's teammates, Kim Gil-li, was more specific with her objective in Italy.

"I want to reach the podium in all five races," Kim said, referring to the women's 500m, 1,000, 1,500m, 3,000m relay and the mixed 2,000m relay.

Hwang Dae-heon, the veteran male short tracker also competing in his third Olympics, said he will try to take the same mindset that he's had all along.

"It's a dream for every athlete to compete in the Olympics, and I am grateful for this precious opportunity," Hwang said. "It's an honor for me to be up against so many great skaters. But rather than paying too much attention to what others are doing, I will do the best I can to execute my plans. If I can do that, then results will just follow."

Rim Jong-un, about to make his Olympic debut at age 18, admitted he'd lost some sleep overnight because of nerves but added, "I can't wait to get there and see the venue firsthand."

"Over the past couple of months, I've been working on different race strategies because I think others might have figured me out a bit," Rim said. "I think I will be able to show a different side at the Olympics. Rather than sticking to the same set of strategies, I will try to be flexible in different situations."