Korean baseball team and the casino

The "challenge at the sauna" by Jang Chang-Sun, chief of Korea Sports Council (KSC) Athlete Training Center Village, occurred in 1966. At the moment that the gold medallist would be decided by weight in the 1966 Toledo World Championship, Jang perspired by the sheer force of his will to win the gold, and he finally became world champion by a margin of only 100 grams. He was also able to garner the silver medal in the Tokyo Olympics 2 years ago for he had the will to become a top wrestler in the world and put himself through a grueling training program as well as the final battle in the sauna. It is the kind of will all people, not only world-class athletes, should have.

It has been revealed that some members of the Korean Dream Team, the Korean baseball team for the Sydney Olympic Games, spent the night of the 18th at a casino. What were they doing? Although it is after-the-fact, might it not have been better if they were able to focus a little more on their game with the strongest team in the world, Cuba?

In 1996 Olympic Games, the Korean team caused some embarrassment. The head coach of the baseball team refused to shake hands with the opponent's coach, a Korean Judo Team member was thrown out of the match without properly saluting the audience, and the Korean basketball team played a sorry game on the court hung-over from previous night's drinking party. "Manner is the foundation of sportsmanship" was a coined phrase at the time. It leaves many to wonder what must be in the mind of the deputy chef de mission of the Korean Olympic Team, Jang Chang-Sun.

dhyoon@donga.com