Either star swimmer Park Tae-hwan, left, or shooter Jin Jong-oh, a silver medallist in Athens, is expected to bring home South Korea’s first gold medal at the Beijing Olympics. Jin will compete in the men’s 10-meter air pistol on Aug. 9, while Park will race in the men’s 400-meter freestyle one day later.




By Kang Seung-woo
Staff Reporter

Australian swimming icon Grant Hackett is considered the biggest challenge to Park Tae-hwan in his attempt to win a gold medal in the men's 400-meter freestyle at the Beijing Olympics.

But even if the 18-year-old swimmer from South Korea beats Hacket, he might not become the first athlete from his country to win a gold medal in Beijing. His compatriot Jin Jong-oh, a standout in shooting events, might beat him to claiming the nation's first gold.

The Summer Games begin in the capital of China on Aug. 8 and will continue for 17 days. Whoever secures the first gold medal will become a national hero for South Korea, which is eyeing a top-10 finish in the medal rankings for the second straight Olympics.

Jin, who finished with a silver medal in the men's 50-meter pistol at the Athens Olympics in 2004, is seeking gold in Beijing, where he will compete in the 10-meter air pistol on Aug. 9.

Four years ago, the South Korean shooter was leading the competition after six trials out of 10, but his seventh shot hit a 6.9 mark, causing him to concede the lead to eventual gold medallist Mikhail Nestruev of Russia.

Jin, a native of Kangwon Province, also has his eye set on giving South Korea a gold medal in a sport that it has struggled to claim Olympic championships in. Since Yeo Kab-soon captured a gold medal in the women's 10-meter air rifle at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, South Korean shooters have managed a total of one silver and one gold in Sydney and Athens.

The 28-year-old Jin doubled in the 10-meter air pistol and 50-meter pistol at the World Cup in March 2006 and came in third at the Doha Asian Games in December of the same year.

Unless Jin wins gold, Park is the most likely contender to capture his country's first Olympic title in Beijing.

He will race in the 400 meters against Hackett and other top-tier swimmers in the morning on Aug. 10, hoping to bring home South Korea's first swimming medal in the history of the Olympics.

The fast-rising star, who upset Hackett in the 400-meter freestyle at the world championship last year, is on the upswing after improving his Asian record. He finished in 3 minutes, 43.59 seconds in April, the third best time of the season behind Hackett's 3:43.15 and American Larsen Jensen's 3:43.53. The world record in the event is 3:40.08, set by retired Ian Thorpe of Australia.

If Jin and Park, who was disqualified for a false start in a 400-meter freestyle qualifier in Athens, fail to earn South Korea's first gold, the women's archery squad, which topped the podium in the past five Olympics, is expected to steal the spotlight in the afternoon on Aug. 10 when it competes in the team event.

South Koreans Look Forward to Swimming Race Most

South Koreans picked swimming as the sport they are most likely to watch during the Beijing Olympics.

According to a survey by Yahoo Korea, 359 people out of 671, accounting for 54 percent of the votes, said they will watch swimming races in which Park Tae-hwan will competes.

Park, 18, who is favored to win a gold medal in the men's 400-meter freestyle, is expected to bring home South Korea's first swimming medal in the history of the Olympics.

Along with the 400-meter event, the teenage sensation will race in the 200- and 1,500-meter freestyles.

Women's handball came in second in the pole with 14 percent of the votes (91 people), and was followed by baseball and football, while only 9 percent (59) selected archery, a sport in which Korean men and women have claimed a total 14 gold medals in the Olympics.

Meanwhile, voters had low expectations for Korea's football team, which will attempt to reach the Olympic semifinals for the first time.

Out of 615 voters, 354 (58 percent) predicted manager Park Sung-hwa's side would not qualify for the quarterfinals, while only 89 voters were confident of it reaching the semifinals.

ksw@koreatimes.co.kr