Ohtani appreciates warm reception from S. Korean fans

Given the oft-bitter sporting rivalry between South Korea and Japan, it is not often that an athlete from one country attains as much respect and popularity in the other as the Japanese baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani has in South Korea. For the Los Angeles Dodgers slugger, the feeling is mutual, as he prepares to play historic Major League Baseball (MLB) games in Seoul. Ohtani arrived in South Korea on Friday to great fanfare, drawing boisterous cheers from hundreds of fans gathered at Incheon

BaseballMarch 16, 2024

Ohtani leads Dodgers to S. Korea as they prepare for historic MLB series

Led by their Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers landed in South Korea on Friday for historic Major League Baseball games in Seoul, drawing thunderous cheers from hundreds of fans camped out at the country's main airport. The Dodgers arrived at Incheon International Airport, just west of Seoul, around 2:30 p.m. Their charter flight touched down about 14 hours after the San Diego Padres, their opponents for the two-game Seoul Series set for Wednesday and Thursday. The

BaseballMarch 15, 2024

Politician continues bashing PSG's Lee Kang-in

In what appears to be another verbal attack against national soccer team player Lee Kang-in, Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo on Thursday wrote and then deleted a series of controversial comments seemingly aimed at the Paris-Saint Germain midfielder. Hong, 70, wrote on his Facebook page earlier in the day that he "hates gapjil by gold spoons." "Gapjil" refers to the arrogant attitude or actions of people in positions of power against those below them. The term "gold spoon"

SoccerMarch 15, 2024

[Graphic News] Ryu Hyun-jin signs megadeal with Eagles

Former Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin made KBO history with an eight-year contract worth 17 billion won ($12.8 million) with the Hanwha Eagles on Feb. 22. The Eagles said Ryu’s contract has no incentives baked into the contract and all 17 billion won is guaranteed. It is also the longest contract in KBO history. Initially, the Eagles had been expected to offer Ryu, who turns 37 later this month, 17 billion won over four years. But by spreading out the same amount of mone

BaseballMarch 15, 2024

Red Devils vow support for national soccer team, despite recent dispute

The official supporters' group for the South Korean national soccer teams on Thursday vowed continued support for the men's team, in light of calls by some fans to boycott the upcoming World Cup qualifiers. Red Devils posted on to the group's Instagram page a message of support for the team, saying it will not boycott the two matches against Thailand slated for later this month. In the aftermath of a feud among national team players during the Asian Cup in Qatar, several fans have

SoccerMarch 14, 2024

Soccer national team members engaged in late-night gambling before Asian Cup: report

Yet another revelation related to South Korea's ill-fated Asian Cup outing hit the local media Thursday, with reports that some members of the men's national soccer team had played cards for money late at night during the training for the tournament. According to reports, a few players and one of the staff of the team enjoyed light gambling in January, during the team's training at Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates in preparation for the Asian Cup. The players have not been verifi

SoccerMarch 14, 2024

Ryu Hyun-jin pleased with 1st KBO preseason outing, thanks fans for support

After pitching in front of home fans for the first time in over a decade, Hanwha Eagles starter Ryu Hyun-jin said Tuesday he was mostly happy with his performance. The 36-year-old left-hander pitched four innings of one-run ball against the Kia Tigers in a preseason game in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon, some 140 kilometers south of Seoul. It was Ryu's first official KBO game since Oct. 4, 2012. He first pitched for the Eagles from 2006 to 201

BaseballMarch 12, 2024

PSG's Lee Kang-in makes national squad despite Asian Cup dispute

South Korean men's national soccer team head coach Hwang Sun-hong announced his 23-man squad Monday, which included Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in who fell from favor with the public for his recent scuffle with team captain Son Heung-min. The interim coach for the team acknowledged the public's concern over Lee, and said addressing the issue could provide a chance to strengthen team chemistry. "I've talked to both players, and resolving (such conflict) can bring (the team) close

SoccerMarch 11, 2024

Giants' Lee Jung-hoo extends spring training hitting streak to 5 games

Lee Jung-hoo of the San Francisco Giants has stretched his spring training hitting streak to five games. The South Korean rookie center fielder batted 1-for-2 with an RBI and a walk against the Colorado Rockies at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona, on Monday (local time). Batting leadoff, Lee grounded out to second base in the top of the first and drew a walk in the top of the second. Lee came up with runners at the corners in the top of the fourth and cashed in a run wit

BaseballMarch 5, 2024

Ryu Hyun-jin likely to pitch in 2 preseason games before KBO Opening Day start: manager

Former major league All-Star Ryu Hyun-jin will likely make two preseason appearances before marking his much-anticipated regular season return to the top South Korean league, his manager said Monday. Ryu and the Hanwha Eagles returned home Monday from their spring training in Okinawa, Japan. Ryu, the 2019 National League All-Star Game starter, reunited with the Eagles on an eight-year contract on Feb. 22, and flew to Okinawa to report to camp the following day. His deal, worth 17 billion won ($1

BaseballMarch 4, 2024

World junior figure skating champion Seo Min-kyu trying to stay humble

South Korean teenager Seo Min-kyu shocked the figure skating world Saturday, winning the men's singles title at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Taipei in his first appearance. The 15-year-old became the first South Korean man to win a medal of any color at the world juniors, and the first South Korean skater, male or female, to win a world junior title since Kim Yu-na won the women's singles gold medal in 2006. Seo, who returned from Taipei City on Monday, insisted he

More SportsMarch 4, 2024

KBO signs record-breaking streaming deal with CJ ENM, moves games behind paywall

The South Korean baseball league announced Monday it has signed a record-setting streaming rights deal with CJ ENM, with its games moving behind a paywall for the first time. For the next three seasons, CJ ENM, the media and entertainment arm of CJ Group, will carry Korea Baseball Organization games on its streaming platform, Tving. According to the KBO, the deal is worth 135 billion won ($101.6 million), compared with the previous five-year, 110 billion-won contract with a consortium of portal

BaseballMarch 4, 2024

LeBron James reaches 40,000 points to extend his NBA career scoring record

LeBron James reached 40,000 points Saturday night, still going strong in his 21st NBA season as he tries to put the career scoring record out of reach. James drove past Michael Porter Jr. and hit a layup with 10:39 left in the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 124-114 loss to the Denver Nuggets for the historic basket. “Being the first player to do something, it’s pretty cool in this league, just knowing the history, the greats that’s come through the league, and

More SportsMarch 3, 2024

Son Heung-min scores 1st Premier League goal in 2 months

Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min has scored his first Premier League goal in two months. Son scored the team's third goal in the 88th minute of their 3-1 win over Crystal Palace at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday. After pouncing on the loose ball in the opponent territory just past the halfway line, Son went on a mad dash toward the box and fired a right-footed shot into the bottom right corner for his team-leading 13th marker of the campaign. It was Son's first

SoccerMarch 3, 2024

Hwang Sun-hong chosen as caretaker boss of nat'l football team

U-23 Korean national team manager Hwang Sun-hong was chosen Tuesday to concurrently helm the senior national team as its interim manager. The Korea Football Association (KFA) made the announcement following a meeting of its National Team Committee, which is responsible for appointing coaches for national teams across different age brackets. "Hwang is a coach affiliated with the KFA and has recently demonstrated his achievements with his team's victory at the Hangzhou Asian Games,"

SoccerFeb. 27, 2024

Ryu Hyun-jin determined to take Eagles to KBO postseason in return from MLB

Having returned home to begin another chapter in his illustrious career, South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin said Friday he will try to push his new team back to the postseason. Ryu reunited with the Hanwha Eagles in the Korea Baseball Organization by agreeing to an eight-year, 17 billion-won ($12.8 million) contract Thursday. By the total amount, Ryu is the highest-paid player in KBO history. Ryu first pitched for the Eagles from 2006 to 2012, before spending the next 11 years in Major League Bas

BaseballFeb. 23, 2024

S. Korean women lose to China in quarterfinals at table tennis worlds

The host country South Korea was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the women's tournament at the table tennis world championships Thursday, following a crushing loss to world No. 1 China. Boasting the world's top three-ranked female players, China shut down South Korea 3-0 in the quarterfinals at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Team Table Tennis Championships in Busan. In the team tournament, each match is made up of up to five singles matches in a best-of-five

More SportsFeb. 22, 2024

National team's 'ping pong gate' comes to close after Son-Lee make up

South Korea's soccer governing body said it was "overjoyed" over recent news that Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in of the national team have buried the hatchet after their highly-publicized quarrel during the Asian Cup 2023, seemingly putting an end to what the public and the local media dubbed "ping pong gate." "After hearing the news (of Son-Lee's reconciliation), I was as happy and excited as if (the team) won in a tournament. ... As for whether the two players

SoccerFeb. 22, 2024

Football federation leaning toward hiring full-time men's coach despite tight schedule

South Korea's national football federation will likely appoint a full-time head coach to fill the vacancy at the men's national team instead of a temporary one as rumored, a senior executive in charge of the process said Wednesday. Chung Hae-sung, named the new head of the National Teams Committee at the Korea Football Association (KFA) on Tuesday, met with new members of his committee Wednesday to discuss the hiring of the new men's national team bench boss. The KFA fired the pre

SoccerFeb. 21, 2024

Lee Kang-in apologizes to Son for Asian Cup scuffle

Soccer star Lee Kang-in said Wednesday that he recently visited national team captain Son Heung-min in London to apologize for his actions in a scuffle during the Asian Cup 2023 earlier this month. "I thought it was important to visit (Son) Heung-min and apologize in person, and through a long conversation with him, I came to understand the weight he shoulders as the captain and look back upon myself," he wrote in the official apology posted on in Instagram page, saying that he paid a

SoccerFeb. 21, 2024