Korean swimming stars named honorary ambassadors for 2019 world championships at home

South Korean swimming stars Park Tae-hwan and An Se-hyeon were named honorary ambassadors for the 2019 world championships Wednesday.The organizing committee for the 2019 FINA World Aquatics Championships, which take place in Gwangju, 350 kilometers south of Seoul, unveiled Park and An as their goodwill ambassadors.Park is the only South Korean swimmer to win an Olympic medal.He captured the 400-meter freestyle gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and silver in the 200m freestyle. Four years later

Sept. 6, 2017

Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon eliminated in 2nd round at US Open

South Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon has been eliminated in the second round at the US Open.　Chung, world No. 47, fell to the 15th-ranked American John Isner in straight sets at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York on Wednesday (local time). Isner dominated Chung in winning the match 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 in one hour and 45 minutes.　 In this EPA photo, Chung Hyeon of South Korea hits a return to John Isner of the United States during their second round men`s singles match at the US Open

Aug. 31, 2017

Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon advances to 2nd round at US Open

South Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon has reached the second round at the US Open.Chung, ranked 47th, defeated 58th-ranked Horacio Zeballos of Argentina 3-6, 7-6 (10-8), 6-4, 6-3 at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York on Monday (local time).After dropping the opening set, Chung took the second set in a tiebreak and finished off Zeballos by winning the next two sets. In this EPA photo, Chung Hyeon of South Korea returns a shot against Horacio Zeballos during their first round

Aug. 29, 2017

Pro hockey coaches predict difficult road ahead for Korea at PyeongChang 2018

Two foreign-born coaches for South Korean professional hockey clubs on Monday predicted a difficult road ahead for the host country at next year's PyeongChang Winter Olympics.Upstart South Korea, ranked 21st in the world, will make its Olympic debut in the men's tournament next February. It has earned a spot as the host nation and will go up against Canada, world No. 1 and two-time defending champion, No. 6 Czech Republic and No. 7 Switzerland.Under the guidance of former National Hockey League

Aug. 28, 2017

Ex-NHL coach still learning new team, culture in Korea

Former National Hockey League coach Kevin Constantine was hired by a South Korean club, Daemyung Killer Whales, two months ago, and the learning process hasn't stopped for the American.And he wouldn't have it any other way."For me, the opportunity to coach the game and experience a new culture would be two of the favorite things I can do in life,"Constantine said at a preseason media conference for the Asia League Ice Hockey, whose 2017-2018 season will begin Sept. 2."I am new, so I am just tryi

Aug. 28, 2017

Defending Asian hockey champion undaunted by challenges in Olympic season

When South Korean club Anyang Halla try to win their third straight Asia League Ice Hockey title in the upcoming season, they'll have to do so without about a dozen players for about half the time.That's because the South Korean national team will call up its players in the buildup to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics next February. Anyang Halla, stocked with talent, could lose up to 12 players starting in November, when South Korea will set up camp and start playing tune-up games.The regular seas

Aug. 28, 2017

Korean achieves new career high in tennis world rankings

South Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon has achieved a career high in the men's world rankings for the second time in two weeks.Chung moved up two spots to reach No. 47 in the Association of Tennis Professionals world rankings released Monday.Two weeks ago, Chung cracked the top 50 for the first time by soaring seven slots to No. 49. In this Associated Press file photo taken on Aug. 14, 2017, Chung Hyeon of South Korea returns a shot against Feliciano Lopez during the first round at the Western &

Aug. 28, 2017

Figure skater determined to win Olympic spot in last qualifying event

Former South Korean national figure skating champion said Friday he's determined to win an Olympic spot at the final qualifying event next month.Lee, a three-time South Korean champion, won the men's singles title at the Figure Skating Korea Challenge last month in Seoul and earned the right to compete at the Nebelhorn Trophy in Germany starting on Sept. 27. It's the last Olympic qualifying competition where six tickets to the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games will be up for grabs. Lee June-hyoung (

Aug. 25, 2017

Seoul-based taekwondo team's N. Korea visit likely to be called off

North Korea has responded negatively to a Seoul-based world taekwondo governing body's plan to send its demonstration team to Pyongyang next month, a sports official said Friday. The official from the World Taekwondo (WT) said it received a letter on Saturday from the North Korea-led International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) World Championships, which expressed a negative opinion about having the WT team in Pyongyang admid the current situation. "Separately with the ITF World Championships organi

Aug. 25, 2017

IOC's Coordination Commission on PyeongChang to hold final meeting before Olympics

An International Olympic Committee body overseeing PyeongChang's preparations for the 2018 Winter Games will pay its final visit to the South Korean host city next week.The organizing committee for PyeongChang 2018 said Thursday the IOC's Coordination Commission, chaired by Gunilla Lindberg, will be in PyeongChang, some 180 kilometers east of Seoul, from next Tuesday to Thursday.This will be the ninth and the last Coordination Commission visit to the first South Korean host city of the Winter Ol

Aug. 24, 2017

KEPCO signs on as sponsor for PyeongChang 2018

Korea Electric Power Corp., the state-run public utility firm, signed on as a corporate sponsor for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Wednesday.KEPCO is the first public corporation to lend support to PyeongChang 2018.As a "Tier One" partner, KEPCO reserves a wide range of marketing rights, including the use of intellectual property and the use of PyeongChang's logo in their advertising campaigns.The organizing committee for PyeongChang declined to disclose the amount of the sponsorship co

Aug. 23, 2017

Korea's Ryu Han-su wins gold at world wrestling championships

South Korean wrestler Ryu Han-su has claimed a gold medal at the world championships, as he washed away his painful memories of last year's Olympics.Ryu topped the men's Greco-Roman 66 kilograms at the 2017 World Wrestling Championships in Paris on Tuesday (local time) after beating Mateusz Bernatek of Poland 2-1 in the final. This was Ryu's second gold medal at the worlds after earning his first one in 2013. In 2015, he settled for silver."When I first became a (world) champion, it seemed unrea

Aug. 23, 2017

PyeongChang, US Olympic body launch youth mentorship program

The organizing committee for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and the United States Olympic Committee on Tuesday announced their launch of a Korean youth mentorship program.In a statement, the organizations said the goodwill campaign is part of the USOC's "Thank You, PyeongChang" initiative, designed to "contribute to the positive legacy" of the first Winter Olympics to take place in South Korea.In the mentorship program, American ice dance tandem of Maia and Alex Shibutani will mentor stude

Aug. 22, 2017

Tickets for PyeongChang Winter Paralympics to go on sale next week

Tickets for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Paralympics will go on sale next week to coincide with the 200-day countdown, the organizers said Thursday.The organizing committee for the Paralympic Winter Games said tickets will be available for purchase online at its website (https://www.pyeongchang2018.com/en/paralympics/index) starting at 2 p.m. next Monday. The Paralympics will run from March 9 to 18.There will be 280,000 tickets available for para alpine skiing, para biathlon, para cross-country s

Aug. 17, 2017

Korean athletes depart for Summer Universiade in Taiwan

South Korean athletes competing at this year's Summer Universiade departed for Taiwan on Thursday.South Korea will be represented in 22 sports by 319 athletes and 96 officials at the Aug. 19-30 competition in Taipei. Some university athletes are already in the Taiwanese capital due to the schedule of their competition. On Thursday, the main delegation of some 110 athletes flew to Taipei. This photo provided by the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee shows South Korean athletes and officials posing

Aug. 17, 2017

Korea bests Iran to win men's intl. handball competition

The South Korean men's handball team defeated Iran Tuesday to win an international competition in Seoul, and Tunisia took second place. South Korea scored a victory of 33-22 over Iran in the last match of the 12th Seoul Cup Handball at SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium in the capital city. (Yonhap)In the three-day competition in which three countries -- South Korea, Tunisia and Iran -- participated, South Korea tied with Tunisia with one win and one tie but went four points ahead in score. Iran fini

Aug. 16, 2017

Chung Hyeon cracks top 50 in men's tennis world rankings for 1st time

South Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon has cracked the top 50 in the men's world rankings for the first time.Chung jumped seven spots to reach a career-high No. 49 in the Association of Tennis Professionals world rankings released on Monday. In this Associated Press file photo taken on Aug. 8, 2017, Chung Hyeon of South Korea hits a shot against Feliciano Lopez of Spain during the first round of the Rogers Cup tennis tournament in Montreal. (Yonhap)Chung's previous high had been No. 51 from Octo

Aug. 14, 2017

Korea, Tunisia end in draw in handball competition

Host South Korea and Tunisia played to a draw to open an international men's handball competition in Seoul on Sunday.The teams ended up deadlocked at 28-28 in the first match of the 12th Seoul Cup Handball at SK Olympic Handball Gymnasium in the nation's capital.Iran is the other nation in the tournament. Tunisia and Iran will square off Monday at the same venue. The finale on Tuesday will pit South Korea against Iran. The top team after the round-robin play will be declared the champion.South K

Aug. 13, 2017

Ex-German Olympic bobsleigh champ named Korea luge coach

Former German Olympic bobsleigh champion Andre Lange was named a coach for the South Korean national luge team Sunday.The Korea Luge Federation said Lange, 44, will join the team in October in preparations for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics at home.Lange is one of the most decorated bobsleigh pilots in history, having won four gold and one silver medals at the 2002, 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics. In this EPA file photo taken on Feb. 21, 2010, Andre Lange of Germany celebrates after winning

Aug. 13, 2017