Despite all the pessimistic predictions, Team Korea achieved great success at the Paris 2024 Olympics, held this summer from July 26 to Aug. 11. The 33rd Summer Olympics, branded as “Paris 2024”, drew significant public attention for its locational attributes prior to the opening ceremony. Satisfying the public’s expectations, various matches were held in representative locations of Paris, which left a powerful impression on those who admired the city. The beach volleyball matches were held with the Eiffel Tower as a background, and the fencing matches were held at the Grand Palais. The event also highlighted outstanding sports stars, including the shooter Kim Ye-ji and the table tennis player Shin Yu-bin. The video that captures Kim Ye-ji’s shooting moment went viral, receiving significant attention from the public including Elon Musk.
Although the games ended with a greater outcome than ever before, the beginning of the games were far from trouble-free. A failure to enter the main round of popular sports, including soccer, made many sports fans disappointed, and the initial predictions estimated that Team Korea would win only up to five gold medals. Nevertheless, outstanding performances of Korean athletes in non-ball sports once again thrilled sports fans. Team Korea reached an impressive milestone in Korean Olympic history, winning 32 medals in total-13 gold medals, 9 silver medals, and 10 bronze medals. This is now listed as one of Korea’s records for the most gold medals in the Olympics, following the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics. Team Korea also succeeded in winning its 100th gold medal in the Summer Olympics. The turning point began as fencer Oh Sang-uk won a gold medal in men’s individual Sabre, completing a Grand Slam. The momentum for victory passed on to the shooting game on the next day. Shooter Oh Ye-jin won a gold medal in Women’s 10m Air Pistol and Kim Ye-ji won a silver medal in the same game. Following the exceptional performances in shooting and fencing, Team Korea also reaffirmed its reputation in archery. More specifically, the archer Kim Woo-jin’s final match with Brady Ellison kept everyone on the edge of their seats, as both players scored perfect 10s in the fifth round, leading to a shoot-off. Team Korea ended up winning all five gold medals in archery, with 1 silver medal and 1 bronze medal as well. Korea also won 3 medals in fencing and 6 medals in shooting. In addition to the sports that Team Korea had high confidence in, including fencing, shooting, and archery, Korea also succeeded in winning medals in badminton, boxing, and modern pentathlon.
While the sports stars who excelled in various sports were praised highly by Korean sports fans, multiple sports associations have faced criticisms of their management. The badminton player An Se-young revealed the long-standing issues within the Korea Badminton Association, shortly after winning a gold medal in Women’s Singles. She pointed out various problems such as insufficient injury management system, training focusing on Doubles, restrictions on participation in international competitions, and the limitation on personal sponsorship contracts. It has also been revealed that the president of the association has abused their power and that the association has been maintaining outdated and improper practices, such as forcing junior players to do the seniors’ laundry and room cleaning.
On the brighter side, heart-warming stories of sports stars were also widely spread during the Olympics. In particular, stories about Huh Mi-mi, the Korean Judo practitioner, who was born and raised in Japan but decided to join Team Korea according to her grandmother’s wish, have been widely shared with the public. Sports stars like Shin Yu-bin and Kim Je-deok, who were introduced to the public as promising athletes, also participated in the Olympics, inspiring many fans.
Although it is said that the Olympic Games is losing its popularity as personal media develops, it is no wonder that this global event keeps athletes motivated, and sports fans excited, and inspires the public with touching stories. The next summer Olympics will be held in Los Angeles in the summer of 2028. It is critical for Korean fans to continue paying attention to the ongoing investigation of the sports association and their management in general, so that athletes can focus on their training without interference.
