Sports

Gangneung tapped mecca of winter sports

By Baek Byung-yeulThe government announced Tuesday a plan to develop Gangneung, Gangwon Province, one of the host cities of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, into a winter sports hub after the Games.At MVL Hotel in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism signed a memorandum of understanding with the Gangwon Provincial Government, the Gangneung City Government, the Korea Ice Hockey Association and Daemyung Holding on the post-management of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics hockey arena after the Games.According to the agreement, the government will entrust management of the newly built Gangneung Hockey Center to Daemyung Holdings and the company will hold various ice sports-related events.For the PyeongChang Olympics, the city of Gangneung will have two brand new ice rinks -- the Gangneung Hockey Center and the Gangneung Oval for speed skating events by the end of this year.To make the city a Mecca of ice sports, the ministry said it will help national ice sports athletes train in Gangneung; host training camps for countries participating in the 2022 B

Mar 29, 2016

Sports

S. Korea trounces Algeria again in football friendly

South Korean men’s Olympic football team midfielder Moon Chang-jin, center, celebrates with his teammates after scoring his team’s third goal during the friendly match between South Korean and Algeria at Goyang Complex Stadium in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. South Korea won 3-0. / YonhapThe South Korean men's Olympic football team beat Algeria 3-0 for their second straight victory over the Africans in a friendly Monday.With more than 14,300 fans gathered at Goyang Complex Stadium in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, north of Seoul, midfielder Moon Chang-jin grabbed a brace for the 10-man hosts after Lee Chang-min had the opener. In their first encounter on Friday, South Korea beat Algeria 2-0.For their second match, the young Taeguk Warriors started with a 3-4-3 formation. It was the first time since the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship semifinals against Qatar on Jan. 27 that head coach Shin Tae-yong used three defenders. In the previous meeting against Algeria, South Korea used a 4-2-3-1 formation.Midfielder Ryu Seung-woo almost put South Korea on the

Mar 28, 2016

Sports

KBO aims for 8 million attendance mark

Coaches and players of the ten KBO league clubs attend the media day, Monday. / YonhapBy Baek Byung-yeul, Park Jin-haiWith the new Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season scheduled to begin, the baseball league aims to reach the 8 million attendance mark in its 35 years after it was inaugurated.Ten KBO clubs will each play 144 games beginning with a three-game series at 7 p.m., Friday, in five stadiums nationwide. Reigning champion Doosan Bears will play the Samsung Lions in Daegu; the Nexen Heroes will host the Lotte Giants at their new home, the Gocheok Sky Dome in western Seoul; the NC Dinos will meet the Kia Tigers in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province; the LG Twins will host the Hanwha Eagles in Seoul; and the SK Wyverns will play the KT Wiz in Incheon.The KBO League announced their goal for the new season is to attract about 8.7 million spectators (12,060 per game). This is 18 percent more than last season, in which the league had its best-ever attendance of 7,360,530. The KBO expected to meet the 8 million attendance mark last year, but the league missed its target due to Mi

Mar 28, 2016

Sports

Suk's early goal gives S. Korea win over Thailand in friendly

Suk Hyun-jun celebrates after scoring a goal at a match against Thailand in Bangkok, Sunday. Korea won 1-0. / Yonhap By John DuerdenSouth Korea has not conceded a single goal in any of its last nine games with the latest coming in a 1-0 win over Thailand in Bangkok on Sunday.For a team that has long had defensive issues, this is an amazing achievement and one that should see Uli Stielike get plenty of plaudits. There has long been a feeling that if Korea could stop conceding the kind of silly goals that was all too common in the past.The last player to breach the backline was Hotaru Yamuguchi of Japan back in August with a fine strike that, it should be remembered, came after Korea had had four shut outs in the previous four games.Since then the results have been thus: North Korea 0-0, Laos 8-0, Lebanon 3-0, Kuwait 1-0, Jamaica 3-0, Myanmar 4-0, Laos 5-0, Lebanon 1-0 and now Thailand.This is a new record for shut-out wins. There have been eight consecutive victories with the team keeping a clean sheet. Such form gave the team an easy passage to the final round of qualificat

Mar 28, 2016

Suk's early goal gives S. Korea win over Thailand in friendly

Sports

S. Korean slugger Lee Dae-ho makes Mariners' 25-man roster

South Korean slugger Lee Dae-ho has made the Seattle Mariners' 25-man roster, an informed baseball source told Yonhap News Agency Monday, a move that gives the 33-year-old his first big league job. The Mariners have yet to unveil their Opening Day roster. On Sunday local time, the M's said Lee had made their 40-man roster and was likely to be added to the team's 25-man roster in the coming days. According to the source, the Mariners have already informed Lee that he'd be on the 25-man roster. Lee stands to make US$1 million and could make as much as $4 million with incentives. The Mariners had to make a decision on Lee by Sunday. If he had failed to make the team, Lee could have opted out of his contract and become a free agent. The first baseman/designated hitter signed a minor league deal with the Mariners in February with an invitation to spring training. He'd been battling for the right-handed backup first base job with Jesus Montero and Stefan Romero, behind left-handed hitting Adam Lind. Lee went 1-for-4 later Sunday and is batting .250 (11-for-44) for the spring with a home ru

Mar 28, 2016

Sports

Korea beats Thailand 1-0 in friendly match

Korea beat Thailand 1-0 in a friendly match on Sunday to set a new national record for most consecutive shutout wins.With nearly 20,000 Thai fans packed at Suphachalasai Stadium in Bangkok, South Korea edged Thailand, thanks to an early first-half goal by striker Suk Hyun-jun. South Korea have now posted eight clean-sheet wins in a row, breaking the previous record of seven set in 1978 and matched in 1989.For the last eight matches, South Korea, coached by Uli Stielike, have scored 26 goals while conceding none.South Korea have also revenged their stunning 2-1 loss to Thailand at the quarterfinals of the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games, the last time the two had met. The Taeguk Warriors now have 31 wins, seven draws and nine losses against Thailand.Against world No. 118 Thailand, the 57th-ranked South Korea started seven players who didn't feature against Lebanon at the second Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup on Thursday. Stielike also used two strikers -- Lee Jeong-hyeop and Suk Hyun-jun -- for the first time from the start, pressuring Thai defenders with their strong phy

Mar 28, 2016

Sports

Lee Dae-ho's MLB bid at crossroads

Seattle Mariners’ Lee Dae-ho signs autographs for fans before a spring training baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in Scottsdale, Arizona, on March 24. / AP-YonhapBy Baek Byung-yeulWith the new Major League Baseball (MLB) season just a week away, it is time for Korean players to accelerate their pace of play as teams face a looming deadline.Among the three Korean position players ― Lee Dae-ho of the Seattle Mariners, Kim Hyun-soo of the Baltimore Orioles and Park Byung-ho of the Minnesota Twins ― joining the big league clubs over the offseason, Lee and Kim are finding it hard to find a spot on the team roster.Lee has only a day left to see whether he can join the Mariners or find another MLB team.If the Mariners decide not to place him on their 40-man roster by Monday (KST), Lee will become a free agent because he can exercise his opt-out clause in his minor league deal.Lee, who has been endeavoring to deserve a much coveted first baseman or a designated hitter slot in the Mariners, went 1-for-4 during spring training against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Sunday (K

Mar 27, 2016

Sports

S. Korea beats Algeria 2-0 in Olympic football friendly

South Korean men’s Olympic football team’s Kwon Chang-hoon shoots to score a goal in a friendly match against Algeria, at Icheon Sports Complex in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, south of Seoul, Friday. South Korea won 2-0.  / YonhapSouth Korean men's Olympic football team beat Algeria 2-0 in a friendly match on Friday, as they enter the tune-up phase for the Rio de Janeiro Summer Games.Midfielder Kwon Chang-hoon scored a goal and set up another in the first half for the under-23 team, delighting more than 11,750 fans at Icheon Sports Complex in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, south of Seoul.South Korea, coached by Shin Tae-yong, took the lead only three minutes into the match when Kwon, after receiving a long pass from Park Yong-woo, blasted a shot from just outside the box and froze up Algerian goalkeeper Abdelkadir Salhi.Kwon, who plays for the Suwon Samsung Bluewings, could have doubled the lead in the 23rd, but his left-foot shot inside the box was saved by the goalkeeper. However, seven minutes later, the 21-year-old collected an assist after his pass found Moon Chang-ji

Mar 25, 2016

S. Korea beats Algeria 2-0 in Olympic football friendly

Sports

Korea beats Lebanon 1:0 in World Cup qualifier match

By John DuerdenOn a chilly Thursday evening at Ansan’s Wa Stadium, fans had to wait until the very end for a goal but in the end it was worth waiting for. A 93rd minute goal from Lee Jang-hyeop gave South Korea a 1-0 win over Lebanon in this final Group G game in the second round of qualification for the 2018 World Cup.The Taeguk Warriors had already won the group but wanted to preserve their 100% record of wins and also protect the even more impressive statistic of not conceding a single goal in the previous six games. The second objective was achieved with a couple of scares but it didn’t look as if the first was going to happen.Korea will take its place as one of the 12 teams in the third and final round of qualification. The dozen will be split into two groups of six (the draw takes place on April 12) with the top two from each going through. The games will kick off later this year and there will be some very big clashes indeed.There is still time to think about that and Lebanon gave the host a tougher than expected match. The Cedars were determined to get something f

Mar 24, 2016

Korea beats Lebanon 1:0 in World Cup qualifier match

Sports

'악으로 깡으로!'…44세 복서의 무모한(?) 도전

서울 극동서부권투체육관에서 최용수 선수 전신을 땀복으로 한껏 감싼 권투선수 최용수(44)는 비 오듯 쏟아지는 땀을 닦아내며 서울 양천구에 있는 극동서부권투체육관(관장 김춘석)에서 훈련에 한창이었다.네다섯 안팎의 남성관원들이 아담한 지하 체육관에서 함께 훈련하고 있었지만 그 가운데 단연 돋보이는 인물은 링 위에서 고독하게 쉬지 않고 거친 숨을 몰아 쉬며 움직이는 최용수 선수다. 4월 9일, 그는 권투 글로브를 내려놓은 지 13년 만에 복귀한다. 상대는 일본의 왼손잡이 나카노 카즈야(30). 대전장소는 자신의 고향인 충남 당진이다.불혹을 넘긴 그의 나이는 이번 그의 복귀전을 보도한 각종 언론매체의 관심거리였다. 노년의 당찬 도전, 중년에 대한 희망 등 일관적인 미사여구들이 그의 복귀전을 설명했다. 하지만 정작 최용수 선수 본인은 이 같은 보도들을 부정했다. 그에게 있어 이번 싸움은 그 누구도 아닌 본인의 승리를 위한 것일 뿐이라고 그는 강조했다.최용수(오른쪽)가 1996년 5월 제주도에서 열린 세계권투협회(WBA) 슈퍼 페더급 챔피언 2차 방어전에서 파나마의 올란도 소토의 얼굴에 혼신의 힘을 다한 오른손 어퍼컷을 날리고 있다. / 코리아타임스보름 가량 앞둔 시합에 대해 크게 신경 쓰고 있지 않다는 최용수 선수는 체중감량에 매진하고 있었다. 왼손잡이인 상대선수에 대비해 국내에서 찾기 힘들다던 왼손잡이 스파링 파트너도 겨우 구했다. 1995년 세계권투협회(WBA) 슈퍼 페더급 챔피언 등극 후 7차 방어까지 성공하던 그의 전성기 시절인 1990년대를 함께했던 김춘석 관장이 현재 최용수 선수와 함께 트레이닝에 참여하고 있다.2003년 권투계 은퇴 후 2006년부터 이듬해까지 K1으로 외도했던 그는 권투선수로서 프로인생을 마감하고자 다시 링으로 돌아왔다.이종격투기의 전세계적 활황 가운데서도 그의 국내권투에 대한 자부심이 엿보였다. “모든 스포츠의 인기가 돌고 돌듯이 현재 그 인기가 바닥을 친 국내 프로권투도 언젠가는 그 어떤 스포츠보다 인기 있는 종목이 될 것”이라고 그는 자부했다.디지털뉴스부@

Mar 24, 2016

Impressive Korea starts World Cup with a bang

Lee Kang-in gearing up for match vs. ex-club coach: 'He's just an opponent'

Every trial became blessing in disguise: Dad behind Korea’s new World Cup hero

Kim Jae-youl re-elected ISU president, term extended through 2030

Injured defender recovering quickly, available in group stage

Sports

Impressive Korea starts World Cup with a bang

Lee Kang-in gearing up for match vs. ex-club coach: 'He's just an opponent'

Every trial became blessing in disguise: Dad behind Korea’s new World Cup hero

Kim Jae-youl re-elected ISU president, term extended through 2030

Injured defender recovering quickly, available in group stage

Read more

Gangneung tapped mecca of winter sports

S. Korea trounces Algeria again in football friendly

KBO aims for 8 million attendance mark

Suk's early goal gives S. Korea win over Thailand in friendly

S. Korean slugger Lee Dae-ho makes Mariners' 25-man roster

Korea beats Thailand 1-0 in friendly match

Lee Dae-ho's MLB bid at crossroads

S. Korea beats Algeria 2-0 in Olympic football friendly

Korea beats Lebanon 1:0 in World Cup qualifier match

'악으로 깡으로!'…44세 복서의 무모한(?) 도전

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