The Korea Herald

지나쌤

[PyeongChang 2018] Speedskating empress Lee Sang-hwa emotional after ‘unforgettable’ experience

By Catherine Chung

Published : Feb. 22, 2018 - 14:43

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Winning her third Olympic medal for Korea on Sunday in the women’s 500 meters, Korea’s ace speedskater Lee Sang-hwa shared a picture of her hugging PyeongChang’s mascot Soohorang on Thursday via Instagram.

Overwhelmed with emotions after claiming the silver, Lee described the PyeongChang Olympics as an “unforgettable” experience in the post. Japanese speedskater Nao Kodaira clinched the gold in the close race, setting an Olympic record of 36.94 seconds.

(Left photo) Lee Sang-hwa hugs PyeongChang mascot Soohorang.(Right photo) South Korean Lee Sang-hwa, left, and Japan‘s Nao Kodaira hold each other after the women’s 500 meters speedskating event at the Gangneung Oval at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Gangneung, South Korea, on Sunday. (Lee Sang-hwa’s Instagram) (Left photo) Lee Sang-hwa hugs PyeongChang mascot Soohorang.(Right photo) South Korean Lee Sang-hwa, left, and Japan‘s Nao Kodaira hold each other after the women’s 500 meters speedskating event at the Gangneung Oval at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Gangneung, South Korea, on Sunday. (Lee Sang-hwa’s Instagram)

Alongside the picture, Lee gave a shout-out to Korean athletes with the hashtag “Team Korea.” Lee also added the following hashtags: “Soohorang,” “Warm” and “Hurray South Korea.”

Fans showered the speedskating star with compliments. One fan said, “You are so cute, Lee Sang-hwa.” Another fan wrote, “You’ve done us proud.”

Lee had thanked fans earlier Tuesday for supporting her throughout the Olympics. “I would not have been able to earn the silver medal without your support and encouragement,” she wrote.

By Catherine Chung (cec82@heraldcorp.com)