Teenage skaters extend Kim Yuna's legacy

You Young in action at the "KB Finance Korea Figure Skating Championship 2019" held at Mokdong Ice Rink in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, on Jan. 12-13. Yonhap

By Ko Dong-hwan

Figure skating did not seem to have much a future in Korea until Kim Yuna started winning medals at Olympic Games and world championships. Three golds, three silvers and two bronzes, including gold from the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics and silver from 2014 in Sochi, sparked an unprecedented renaissance era in the sport here and reason for more talents to emerge.

Following her retirement after the Sochi, the country continued to nurture potential stars to make sure that Kim's legacy didn't perish. Five years later, three teenage skaters, who have already tasted victories against domestic and global oppositions and found themselves in the media spotlight, are sailing smoothly toward the international championships in two months. The skaters are You Young, Lim Eun-soo and Cha Jun-hwan.

They won high praise at the “KB Finance Korea Figure Skating Championship 2019” at Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul's Yangcheon-gu District last weekend.

Cha Jun-hwan performs on the second day of the "KB Finance Korea Figure Skating Championship 2019.” Yonhap

Cha, 17, in the men's single free skating, earned 156.40 points on Sunday with the help of an original sound track from “Romeo and Juliet.” With 89.12 from the short program a day before, his total put him on the top podium, more than 50 points ahead of the runner-up.

It was his third crown in the national championship event and a reminder of his internationally acclaimed athleticism at the International Skating Union Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in December 2018, where he won bronze. He was the first Korean male to reach the podium at the prestigious competition.

With his title, Cha, a student from Whimoon High School in Seoul, has reserved a ticket to Saitama in Japan, where this year's world championship will be held in March.

Lim Eun-soo performs on the second day of the "KB Finance Korea Figure Skating Championship 2019.” Yonhap

The other South Korean heading to Japan is Lim Eun-soo, 15. The Hangang Middle School student won the women's singles at the national championship in December 2018 but had to be content with second place in the first 2019 national showdown. Marred by a point-deductible unstable landing in free skating on Sunday, her total was 194.20.

The queen of the women's singles on Sunday was You Young, 14, who performed to the tune of “Hoist the Colors” from Hollywood film “Pirates of the Caribbean” and ended her show with her raised right arm position as if hoisting a sword. Her outfit reminded viewers of a pirate as well. The free-skating performance earned 130.95 points, taking here total to 198.63.

Before this win, You skated her way to her first national championship victory in January 2018 when she scored 204.68, beating older contestants eligible for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

The Gwacheon Middle School student was not old enough to compete in the senior competition at the world championship in Saitama. She instead will lock horns with world juniors at Zagreb, Croatia, in March.