(LEAD) (Winter Olympics) S. Korean Mo Tae-bum wins gold in men's 500 meter speed skating

(ATTN: UPDATES with details from 4th para)
VANCOUVER, Feb. 15 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Mo Tae-bum pulled off a stunning
victory in the 500 meter speed skating event in his Olympic debut on Monday,
earning the country its first ever gold medal in the speed skating event.

Mo was clocked at 69.82 seconds at Richmond Olympic Oval, nudging out Japanese
rivals Keiichiro Nagashima and Joji Kato by 16 hundredths of a seconds.
Mo, who turned 21 on Monday, stood second with 34.923 seconds in the first run,
following Mika Poutala of Finland, but staged a dramatic comeback in the second
race with a time of 34.906 seconds.
"I'm very happy that I gave myself the best birthday present ever," Mo said
during the press conference held after the race. "Frankly, I didn't expect the
medal finish. But after I raced well in the first leg, I got confident of the
second run."
Mo is the first South Korean speed skater to win an Olympic gold since the
country first participated in the St. Moritz Winter Games in 1948. South Korea's
short track speed skaters have grabbed six golds in previous Olympic games.
Few expected Mo's victory, with much of the spotlight having been reserved for
Lee Kang-seok, who captured bronze in Turin four years ago and ranked first in
world standings, and on five-time Olympian Lee Kyou-hyuk. Mo stood 14th in world
rankings.
Lee Kang-seok finished with a time of 70.41 seconds, coming in fourth after the
two Japanese athletes, while Lee Kyou-hyuk placed 10th with 70.48 seconds.
"In a press conference back home last month, nobody asked me any questions," he
said with a delighted laugh. "I think that indifference helped me work hard
without pressure."
With Mo's gold, South Korea's medal count now stands at three, with two golds,
including Lee Jung-soo's gold medal in the 1,500m short track event, and one
silver from Lee Seung-hoon's surprise finish in the 5,000m speed skating
competition.
brk@yna.co.kr
(END)

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