Big Stars Are Born

“Mr. Ippon,” Lee Won-hee (Korea Racing Association), was chosen as the best judo player at the Athens Olympics.

Also, Yoo Seung-min (Samsung Life Insurance) defeating the “Great Wall” in table tennis and Park Sung-hyun (Jeonbuk Provincial Government) shooting 10 points and winning six times in a row in team competition were both selected as the best moments of each event.

On August 30, Reuters from England chose the best moments and best players for each event of the Athens Olympics.

Reuters chose Lee Won-hee from South Korea instead of other judo players from Japan as the best fighter in judo. Reuters praised Lee Won-hee, saying, “Lee Won-hee, the winner of gold medal in men’s 73kg judo, showed outstanding skills with speed and efficient movements. Lee was so fast that the competitors lost sight of him in the twinkle of an eye. Unfortunately, all of Lee’s competitors couldn’t stand against Lee for more than five minutes.”

Reuters also reported that Park Sung-hyun in women’s archery helped South Korea to remain the champion ever since archery was re-introduced in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics by shooting and scoring 10 points with her very last arrow.

It also reported that China’s attempt to win all events in table tennis in three straight Olympics was frustrated by Yoo Seung-min’s talents in the men’s singles table tennis event.

In swimming, Reuters chose Michael Phelps (USA), who won eight medals, including six gold medals, as the best player, and the men’s 200m finals, in which Phelps competed against Ian James Thorpe, was chosen as the best moment.

Reuters chose the moment when Alexey Nemov’s score was raised, by the boo from the audience as the best moment in men’s gymnastics, and chose Nemov, who only ranked fifth in the horizontal bar, as the event’s best player instead of Paul Hamm (USA), the winner of the individual combined, in order to make cynical remarks to the sport’s governing body, the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG).

Sang-Soo Kim ssoo@donga.com