(Yearender) S. Korean athletes shine on world stage

By Kim Boram
SEOUL, Dec. 20 (Yonhap) -- The year 2009 saw South Korean athletes staging
powerful performances in traditionally Western-dominated sporting events, such as
figure skating, PGA golf, baseball and weightlifting, with world figure skating
champion Kim Yu-na undisputedly the most talked-about star among South Koreans.
Kim's winning streak began at the World Figure Skating Championships in Los
Angeles in March and culminated at the Grand Prix Final in Tokyo in early
December, thrilling South Koreans exhausted by protracted economic hardships.
Golfer Yang Yong-eun overpowered Tiger Woods in August, further exciting fans and
becoming the first player from Asia to win a major PGA title.
Shin Ji-yai, who won the LPGA money title, added to the list of South Korean
athletes' accomplishments, while the nation's footballers advanced to the World
Cup finals for the seventh consecutive time. In addition, South Korean
baseballers finished second at the World Baseball Classic, and Jang Mi-ran won
her fourth consecutive World Weightlifting Championships title.
A nationwide poll by Gallup Korea showed skating queen Kim to be the public's
favorite for the third year in a row, while soccer star Park Ji-sung of
Manchester United came in second in the contest for best Korean athlete of the
year.
The 19-year-old Kim, who set a new world record of 76.12 points in the short
program of the World Figure Skating Championship in Los Angeles, continued her
record-breaking performances in the Grand Prix series.
She set a new overall points record with 210.03 at the season-opening Trophee
Eric Bompard in Paris in October, becoming the first woman to top 210. She
eclipsed her short program best again with 76.28 at Skate America a month later.
Winning all three Grand Prix events and owning all the women's figure skating
records, Kim, who could not compete at Turin in 2006 due to her young age, seems
to be peaking just ahead of her Olympic debut.
She is strongly favored to win the Olympic gold medal in figure skating in
Vancouver, something no Korean has ever done.
"It's difficult to maintain peak condition for an entire season. I hope I stay
healthy until the Vancouver Olympics," said Kim.
Kim's gold medal in Los Angeles came shortly after a strong performance by the
South Korean baseball team at the World Baseball Classic (WBC).
The South Koreans, who won gold in the Beijing Olympics last year with nine
undefeated wins, reached the final of the international competition held in the
U.S. in March, beating star-studded teams with only one major leaguer, Choo
Shin-soo of the Cleveland Indians, on the team.
After routing Venezuela 10-2 in the semifinals, Korea was nudged by Japan 5-3 in
the final after a 10-inning seesaw game. The "great challenge," as manager Kim
In-sik called the performance, showcased younger players mostly under 27 and
revived the popularity of the eight-team Korea Baseball Organization (KBO).
At home, nearly 6 million fans visited local ballparks in the 2009 season,
breaking the 14-year-old attendance record, with the KBO expecting the number of
spectators to surpass 6 million next season as the national team prepares for
next year's Asian Games in China and the next WBC tournament in 2013.
South Korea's national football team clinched a berth to the World Cup finals to
be held in South Africa in June next year for its eighth appearance in the
football showcase since 1954.
The squad, led by coach Huh Jung-moo, finished the Asian preliminary round at the
top of their group without a single defeat. North Korea, which beat Italy to
reach the World Cup quarterfinals in 1966, also managed to grab a ticket to South
Africa for the first time in about 40 years.
South Korea will face Argentina, Nigeria and Greece in Group B, while North Korea
will face Brazil, Ivory Coast and Portugal in Group G.
"I will prepare well to achieve a goal to advance to the last 16 on foreign
soil," coach Huh said. "I believe we have a chance."
South Korean golfers also racked up amazing feats in the U.S. LPGA and PGA tours.
Shin Ji-yai, 21, won the LPGA Rookie of the Year award and topped the official
money list, but narrowly lost the LPGA Player of the Year race to Lorena Ochoa of
Mexico. Shin, who won three competitions last year, including the British Open,
again recorded three wins and 12 top-10 finishes this year.
In men's golf, which has been overshadowed by women's golf for a decade, Yang
made history with his stunning victory over world champion Tiger Woods.
Yang's eagle chip shot in the 14th hole and a birdie shot in the final hole
marked the first major victory by a golfer from Asia at a PGA Championship.
Until the 2009 PGA Championship, players from every continent except Asia had
captured a major title. South Korean-born golfer Choi Kyoung-ju, who has won
seven PGA tour victories, but not one major championship, finished third at the
2004 Masters.
"I will do my best to win PGA tours as long as I get opportunities, and upgrade
my golfing skills," Yang said.
brk@yna.co.kr
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