South Korean weightlifter Sa Jae-hyouk lifts 163 kilograms in his second trial of the men's 77-kilogram division final. Sa won a gold medal. It is South Korea's first Olympic gold in the sport since Jeon Byung-gwan won at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992. / Korea Times



By Kang Seung-woo
Staff Reporter

South Korea is etching its name with China and the United States among the sports powers.

On Wednesday, weightlifter Sa Jae-hyouk brought home a gold medal in the men's 77-kilogram division final of the Beijing Olympics.

It is South Korea's sixth gold medal in the Summer Games and it means that the Northeast Asian country has picked up at least one gold every day since the Olympics started.

In the final round, Sa lifted 366 kilograms in total ― 163 in the snatch and 203 in the clean and jerk ― to tie with China's Li Hongli, but his weight, 450 grams lighter than Li, earned him the Olympic championship.

Finishing third in the snatch, the 23-year-old hoisted 201 kilograms in his first clean and jerk trial and next made it with a 203.

His gold is the first feat in the sport since Jeon Byung-gwan won in the 56-kilogram division at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992.

South Korea's baseball squad came back from behind to defeat the United States 8-7 on Lee Jong-wook's sacrifice fly in the ninth inning.

After allowing the 7-6 lead in the top of the ninth, they equaled the match on Lee Taek-keun's fielder's choice and with a runner on third, Lee Jong-wook flied out to center, bringing the runner home to end the game.

South Korea's Lee Kyung-won and Lee Hyo-jung advanced to the women's badminton doubles final at the Beijing Olympics Wednesday.

The fourth-ranked duo defeated Japan's Miyuki Maeda and Satoko Suetsuna 22-20, 21-15 in a match.

It is the first time for South Korean women to reach the championship match since Gil Young-ah and Jang Hye-ock did so at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.

The pair will face a Chinese duo for the Olympic title.

The women's handball team has almost secured a quarterfinal berth.

In its third qualifier, the Lim Young-chul-led unit downed Olympic rookie Sweden 31-23 to reap a two-consecutive win stretch after an improbable tie with Russia.

Archers Park Kyung-mo, Im Dong-hyun and Lee Chang-hwan are closing in on South Korea's first men's individual title in the Olympics by all three making it to the round of 16.

However, the highly-hyped South Korean football team suffered an early exit.

In its final qualifier of Group D against winless Honduras, South Korea won 1-0 on Zenit St. Petersburg defender Kim Dong-jin's winning goal to finish third with 1-1-1 in the pool.
Cameroon played to a scoreless draw with group-leading Italy, and took the runner-up place to advance to the round of eight with a 1-2-0 mark.

ksw@koreatimes.co.kr

By Jane Han
Staff Reporter

Before the overwhelming joy of swimmer Park Tae-hwan's Olympic victory even got a chance to sink in, the airing of his slightly off-tune but cute singing in SK Telecom's popular TV commercial had South Koreans smiling again.

It was a well-synchronized and golden marketing moment for the nation's top carrier at a ``bargain price.''

With the 19-year-old's consecutive medal wins and soaring popularity, his value is about to leap to new heights.

SK, which signed a two-year sponsorship deal with Park last year, said Tuesday that it is considering extending the contract until the next Olympics in 2012.

Considering the swimmer's status, the wireless operator has nothing to lose given its advantage over other competitors that want a piece of Park, based on a pre-set agreement. The only catch is that today's Park is worth much more than last year's Park.

SK Telecom gives the swimmer 200 million won ($193,000) for training and between 400 million to 500 million won per appearance on the company's video and print ads.

With Park now bringing a gold medal to the table, industry experts say his pay will probably double. Aside from SK, the swimming prodigy has endorsement deals with Kookmin Bank, Lotte Chilsung and Basic House.

``He's handsome, charming, well-spoken and a gold medallist. What more could you want?'' said Kim Min-ho, a consultant for the Seoul-based advertising agency Ad One.

Kim said many companies favor young, energetic, attractive athletes to enhance their brand image.

``Figure skater Kim Yu-na is another good example,'' he said. ``Look at how many companies she's modeling for.'' The 18-year-old figure skating star has two major titles under her belt, and represents Kookmin, Maeil Dairy Industry and Lotte Chilsung.

The attractive and outspoken teen interacts with her fans through her personal homepage, which she frequently updates with her latest photos.

Kim Bo-kyung, chairman of Samsung Economic Research Institute's trend forum, said there is a general shift in the attitude of today's Korean athletes.

``They no longer tell sappy stories about their dirt-poor background,'' he said, ``and this better appeals to younger generations who like hip and happy.''

A good thing for advertisers is that the Beijing Olympics has further publicized this new breed.

Judo gold medallist Choi Min-ho, fencing silver medalist Nam Hyun-hee and the men's archery team are among rising stars that companies are eyeing for endorsements.

``We rarely see athletes showing tears after winning or losing,'' Kim said. ``It could be good in that their sportsmanship has grown, but it could also mean the death of the `hungry attitude.'''

jhan@koreatimes.co.kr