By Yoon Chul
Staff Reporter
The Korean Short Track speed skating team will look to build on its great start to the season at the second Short Track World Cup in Mokdong, Seoul from Thursday to Sunday.
The men's and women's teams grabbed a combined 11 medals, including five gold, in eight events at the first World Cup event of the season last week in China. They will hope to continue that success in front of local fans.
The Korean men's team will be the one to watch this weekend.
Despite being without injured An Hyun-soo, who generated three gold medals at the Turin Winter Olympics in 2006, new Korean skating star Sung Si-bak has stepped up, notching two gold medals, in the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter relay events, in China. Lee Jung-soo reached the finish line first in the 1,000 meters.
The surprise came when Kwak Yoon-gi claimed gold in the 500 meters, usually the weakest event for the Korean team.
The Korean men's team brought back four gold, one silver and one bronze from Beijing.
"As it hasn't been too long since the first World Cup, my boys are a little tired," said team manager and former Olympic gold medalist Kim Ki-hoon. "But if we get good results in the second competition, that will give us the momentum we need entering the third and fourth competitions, which will serve as qualifiers for the Olympics. We want to continue to get better."
The Korean women's team faces a different challenger: world No. 1 Wang Meng of China.
Though Wang won only one gold medal in China, in the 500 meters, she is still considered one of the strongest short track speed skaters in the world.
Last week, the Korean women won gold in the 3,000-meter relay and Lee Eun-byul won silver medals in the 1,000 meters and the 1,500 meters.
Overall, the event was dominated by four countries, with Korea (11), Canada (five), the United States (four) and China (three), winning all the medals.
The Mokdong Ice Rink will host 201 skaters from 31 countries, including Wang and five-time Olympic medalist Apolo Anton Ohno of the United States.
The third World Cup event takes place in Montreal beginning on Nov. 5 and Olympic qualifying wraps up the following week at the fourth event in Marquette, Mich.