Sports with Shay: Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics

The excitement is rising near Sochi as people from around the world are getting ready for the 2014 Winter Olympics. Athletes are preparing themselves for competition, while fans are eagerly waiting for February 7th—the official start of the Games.

South Korea is especially excited this year, as the country won 14 total medals in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Korea’s men and women excelled in short track and speed skating, with a combined total of five gold, six silver and two bronze medals. Mo Tae-bum and Lee Sang-hwa won gold medals in speed skating in the men’s and the women’s 500 meters, respectively. Kim Yun-a won the gold in figure skating. All three athletes will aim to defend their gold in their respective competitions. In addition, South Korea will also be participating in Biathlon, Curling, Figure Skating, Luge, Short Track Speed Skating and Speed Skating.

For those of you keeping track, Korea will be sending one man and one woman to the Biathlon, and one five-woman team, which is ranked seventh in the world, will compete for the gold in Curling. Kim Hye–jin and Park So–youn will join Kim Yun-a in the quest for the gold in Figure Skating. The Luge team has filled their quota with participants in men’s, women’s and team competitions. In addition, Korea has qualified a full team of five women and five men for short track speed skating and the maximum of 10 women and 10 men in speed skating. All in all, there will be 65 South Korean athletes participating in the Games.

Each and every athlete is preparing for the Winter Games and is ready to show off his or her skills for South Korea country to the world.

The Luge athletes, who do not have a specialized Luge track in Korea, have been competing internationally to earn their right to race. After record-setting performances in Norway and Germany in the Luge World Cup, the Korean athletes traveled to Utah in America for preparation. All of the travel and work has paid off. For the first time in Korean history, Luge athletes will join the race and will be able to compete in each and every Luge discipline.

In addition, the men speed skaters are preparing themselves every day with workouts and practices that start at five in the morning and finish around  eight at night. With high expectations for success and low expectations from their critics, the male speed skaters are putting everything they have into trying to win.

In women’s short track speed skating, the 16-year-old sensation, Shim Suk-hee, has stunned her opposition during the past two seasons, and she should be competing for gold medals in the individual race and the 3,000 meter relay. She has worked incredibly hard over the seasons and has her eye on the prize.

While the athletes are doing all that they can to prepare, Korean celebrities and people of importance have also been helping by publically addressing their care and admiration for the winter competitors.

In particular, South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who visited the athletes at the National Training Center to mark the 30-day countdown, has said, “The Government will provide support to allow our athletes to compete in a more comfortable and fun environment.” While she wants the competitors to have a fun time, she also wants them to work hard, give all and leave without regrets.

In addition, Park advised the athletes with a saying used at the National Training Center in Seoul: “The sweat of athletes makes steel rust and then becomes a gold medal.”

The expectations are high. The fans want an even better finish than the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games. Many of the athletes and fans have expressed the expectation of a Top 10 finish in the total medal count. South Korea’s stated goal is to get at least four gold medals and to finish in the Top 10 to place seventh.

Sure, there are plenty of people in Korea wanting individual athletes to win. However, Korean citizens overall want the entire group of winter athletes to contribute to the total medal count. South Korea has been in the Top 10 for five of the past six Winter Olympics. With 98 total medals to be had, South Koreans are filled with excitement.

The Games are almost here. The fans are eager. The athletes are ready. With its largest ever Winter Games delegation in the nation’s history and a ninth place total medal count finish in 2010, South Korea is on the right road to success. South Korea is ready to win.