A joint table tennis team from the two Koreas yesterday won the final in mixed doubles at the Korea Open, claiming the first gold in the latest installment of sporting diplomacy on the peninsula.
Jang Woo-jin, a male player from the South, and Cha Hyo-sim, a female player from the North, defeated China 3-1 at the mixed doubles final at the international tournament held in the South’s city of Daejeon.
It was the first gold medal won by an inter-Korea sports team in nearly three decades after a women’s joint table tennis team in 1991 scored a shock victory over reigning champion China in the World Championship in Japan.
Photo: EPA
China’s Wang Chuqin and Sun Yinsha won the first set 11-5 before the Korean team thrashed them 11-3, 11-4, 11-8 in consecutive sets as some South Korean fans chanted in unison “We are one.”
“I really wanted to win this game ... and the cheers from the crowd gave me goosebumps,” Jang told reporters after the game. “I saw Hyo-sim crying during the ceremony and it broke my heart that we have to say goodbye soon.”
The two Koreas have often used sports to break ice on the volatile inter-Korea relations by forming joint teams.
Eight female and eight male table tennis players from the North, including Kim Song-i — a women’s singles bronze medalist at the 2016 Rio Games — competed in the Korea Open.
Four joint teams — men’s and women’s doubles, as well as two mixed doubles — were formed. The men’s doubles team on Friday won bronze.
The Koreas are also to field joint teams in canoeing, rowing and women’s basketball at next month’s Asian Games in Indonesia.
After letting another big lead slip with an error-strewn performance at the French Open on Wednesday, top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka felt like getting as far away from the courts as possible. “Just want to quit tennis right now,” Sabalenka said after wasting a lead of a set and two breaks in a 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 loss to Diana Shnaider in the women’s singles quarter-finals. “We’ll see in few days. Hopefully I’ll get back on track mentally.” Sabalenka’s wait for a first French Open title continues despite the four-time major winner leading 4-1 in the second set and being two points from victory while
BIG NAMES GONE: Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title, reaching semi-finals for the fifth time in six years and finishing second on three occasions Alexander Zverev on Tuesday breezed past Rafael Jodar to stay on course for an elusive Grand Slam title at the French Open, while Jakub Mensik halted Joao Fonseca’s scintillating run in the quarter-finals. Zverev, the highest-ranked player left in the men’s draw, put an end to Spanish teenager Jodar’s impressive Roland Garros debut, easing into the semi-finals with a 7-6, (7/3), 6-1, 6-3 win. The 29-year-old Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title. He has finished runner-up on three occasions, including at the 2024 French Open. “I want to win the matches that are ahead of
Liverpool are in advanced talks with former AFC Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola as they seek a replacement for Arne Slot, reports said on Tuesday. Iraola has emerged as Liverpool’s top target to replace Slot, who was sacked on Saturday last week after a turbulent second season in charge. Liverpool have reportedly agreed a deal in principle to bring the Spaniard, who left Bournemouth at the end of this season, to Anfield. Sporting director Richard Hughes was heavily involved in hiring Iraola during his time at Bournemouth and is again spearheading the recruitment of the highly rated coach. The Reds are
US President Donald Trump said he would attend Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Monday at Madison Square Garden, but said he does not have much sympathy for ordinary basketball fans who cannot afford sky-high ticket prices to do the same. “They can watch it on television,” Trump said aboard Air Force One on Friday as he flew to Wisconsin for an event with farmers, after he was asked about tickets that have climbed as high as US$8,000 each when the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs square off in Manhattan for the first time in the series. “It’s sorta
RSS