Speed skaters gearing up for PyeongChang
16 January, 2018
Speed skaters race around a 400-meter oval track for distances from 500 meters up to 10,000 meters in the Olympics. The event has been popular in the Winter Games as it is fast and fun.
In past Olympics, Korean speed skaters have won nine medals including four gold, four silver and one bronze. For the host country of the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics, Korean skaters are expected to win at least two gold medals.
There are 14 gold medals available in speed skating events at PyeongChang.
One noticeable thing is the PyeongChang Olympics will feature a newly approved speed skating mass start event.
Mass start refers to a starting format in sporting events in which a large number of competitors are subject to the same environmental conditions, starting at the same time and at the same place and proceeding along the same course.
While only two skaters are allowed to race at one time in other speed skating events, all competitors start simultaneously in the mass start, where some physical contact is allowed.
It is good news for Korea who has Lee Seung-hoon, the world's No.1 skater in mass start events.
The 30-year-old veteran is a gold medalist in the men's 10,000 meter at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. He has won two gold medals in mass starts and one gold in a team pursuit at International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup events this season. At PyeongChang he will team up with a pair of high schoolers, 18-year-old Kim Min-seok and 16-year-old Chung Jae-won.
Kim Bo-reum is also considered a strong gold medal contender in the women's mass start. Kim began her speed skating career as a short track racer but converted to long track in 2010 as a high school sophomore. Kim won three mass start world cup races in the 2016-17 season.
Mo Tae-bum, who became the first Korean to win an Olympic gold in speed skating after finishing first in the men's 500-meter race at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, is also aiming to rebound at the PyeongChang Games.
Lee Sang-hwa aims for three-peat
Lee Sang-hwa, two-time Olympic champion in the women's 500-meter speed skating, aims for a three-peat at PyeongChang, but there seems little doubt she can edge out the current world No. 1 Nao Kodaira of Japan.
It has been only one or two years since the Japanese skater became the strongest medal contender in the 500-meter race as she finished 12th in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and fifth in the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
But after meeting her Netherlands coach Marianne Timmer, a two-time Dutch gold medalist for the 1,000-meter and 1,500-meter races at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, Kodaira has emerged as the world No. 1 sprinter.
In the ISU World Cup speed skating season, Kodaira won all seven races while Lee has won five silver and one bronze.
It is still Lee who holds the world best record with 36.36 seconds in the women's 500-meter race, but it was recorded five years ago while Kodaira broke her personal best with 36.40 seconds last month.
Despite her rival's impressive recent displays, Lee remained undaunted by the Japanese skater saying "the real game begins at PyeongChang."
"Last year, because of injuries, I don't think I had any race that I was satisfied with," Lee told reporters at Incheon International Airport on Dec. 12. "It's been a different story this year. I think my time has improved because I've been battling (Kodaira). I think I got my speed back, too."
Lee said she suffered a series of injuries but the Olympics will be a totally different story. Proving she has fully recovered, Lee won the women's 500-meter at the National Winter Sports Festival on Friday with a record of 38.21 seconds. "I am pretty satisfied with the result as I expected to race within 38.55 seconds," she said.
In past Olympics, Korean speed skaters have won nine medals including four gold, four silver and one bronze. For the host country of the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics, Korean skaters are expected to win at least two gold medals.
There are 14 gold medals available in speed skating events at PyeongChang.
One noticeable thing is the PyeongChang Olympics will feature a newly approved speed skating mass start event.
Mass start refers to a starting format in sporting events in which a large number of competitors are subject to the same environmental conditions, starting at the same time and at the same place and proceeding along the same course.
While only two skaters are allowed to race at one time in other speed skating events, all competitors start simultaneously in the mass start, where some physical contact is allowed.
It is good news for Korea who has Lee Seung-hoon, the world's No.1 skater in mass start events.
The 30-year-old veteran is a gold medalist in the men's 10,000 meter at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. He has won two gold medals in mass starts and one gold in a team pursuit at International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup events this season. At PyeongChang he will team up with a pair of high schoolers, 18-year-old Kim Min-seok and 16-year-old Chung Jae-won.
Kim Bo-reum is also considered a strong gold medal contender in the women's mass start. Kim began her speed skating career as a short track racer but converted to long track in 2010 as a high school sophomore. Kim won three mass start world cup races in the 2016-17 season.
Mo Tae-bum, who became the first Korean to win an Olympic gold in speed skating after finishing first in the men's 500-meter race at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, is also aiming to rebound at the PyeongChang Games.
Lee Sang-hwa aims for three-peat
Lee Sang-hwa, two-time Olympic champion in the women's 500-meter speed skating, aims for a three-peat at PyeongChang, but there seems little doubt she can edge out the current world No. 1 Nao Kodaira of Japan.
It has been only one or two years since the Japanese skater became the strongest medal contender in the 500-meter race as she finished 12th in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and fifth in the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
But after meeting her Netherlands coach Marianne Timmer, a two-time Dutch gold medalist for the 1,000-meter and 1,500-meter races at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, Kodaira has emerged as the world No. 1 sprinter.
In the ISU World Cup speed skating season, Kodaira won all seven races while Lee has won five silver and one bronze.
It is still Lee who holds the world best record with 36.36 seconds in the women's 500-meter race, but it was recorded five years ago while Kodaira broke her personal best with 36.40 seconds last month.
Despite her rival's impressive recent displays, Lee remained undaunted by the Japanese skater saying "the real game begins at PyeongChang."
"Last year, because of injuries, I don't think I had any race that I was satisfied with," Lee told reporters at Incheon International Airport on Dec. 12. "It's been a different story this year. I think my time has improved because I've been battling (Kodaira). I think I got my speed back, too."
Lee said she suffered a series of injuries but the Olympics will be a totally different story. Proving she has fully recovered, Lee won the women's 500-meter at the National Winter Sports Festival on Friday with a record of 38.21 seconds. "I am pretty satisfied with the result as I expected to race within 38.55 seconds," she said.