The runners-up of the 2022-2023 International Skating Union (ISU) World Team Trophy Competition of the Korean figure skating team are the male and female signboards Cha Jun-hwan (21, Korea University) and Lee Hae-in (17, Sehwa Girls’ High School). ‘It’s not an exaggeration to say that I did.
The two skaters, who made a mark in Korean figure skating by winning silver medals side by side at the ISU World Championships last month, made another history by bringing out the best results in this event as well.
In the Team Trophy, which ended on the 15th, Korea finished second overall with 95 ranking points, following the United States (120 points). It was a dramatic result, beating 3rd place Japan (94 points), who was considered a favorite for the championship, by one point.
Korea was not considered a medal candidate until the opening of the tournament. This is because the skills of pairs and ice dancing, which are team events, were so low compared to other teams.
In order for Korea to win a medal, it had to achieve unrivaled results in the men’s and women’s singles events.
A scenario that seemed impossible was made a reality by Cha Jun-hwan and Lee Hae-in.
The drama was first written by Lee Hae-in. Lee Hae-in performed cleanly at the Team Trophy women’s single short program held at the Tokyo Gymnasium on the 13th and took first place out of 12 contestants.
It was a surprise that she defeated Kaori Sakamoto, a Japanese signboard who shined in the world championship for the second time in a row.
Lee Hae-in’s first place in the short was not luck. In the women’s single free skating held on the 14th, she also took first place with perfect performance.
Lee Hae-in showed off her spirit by breaking her personal best scores in both her short program (76.90 points) and free skating (147.32 points).
With Lee Hae-in’s first place in the short and free, Korea took a total of 24 points, 12 ranking points each.
Cha Jun-hwan perfectly inherited the drama written by Lee Hae-in.
He scored 101.33 points in the men’s single short program on the 13th and came second out of 12 players.
The 100 points in the short program was called the ‘Evil Barrier’ that no Korean player could cross, and Cha Jun-hwan surpassed it in this event.
Cha Jun-hwan’s performance did not stop there.
On the 15th, in the men’s single free skating, the last event of the tournament, he scored 187.82 points and took first place overall.
In fact, South Korea needed Cha Jun-hwan to finish in at least second place to beat Japan to win the silver medal.
Cha Jun-hwan, who competed with a heavy load, brought out the best performance by perfectly handling high-level skills, including two quadruple jumps.
He was like a come-from-behind home run in the bottom of the ninth in baseball, a game-winning goal in extra time in the second half in soccer, and a buzzer beater in basketball.
Cha Jun-hwan gave Korea 11 points in the short and 12 points in the free.
Cha Jun-hwan and Lee Hae-in played a very large part in this competition. The total score obtained by the two players is 47 points, which is close to half of the total score (95 points).
Korea ranked last in all four events, including pair short program, free skating, ice dance rhythm dance and free dance, but thanks to the performances of Cha Jun-hwan and Lee Hae-in, Korea beat Japan by one point and won the silver medal.
The two players played the role of national team aces even outside the silver class. 토토사이트
Lee Hae-in, who has a bright personality, always cheered loudly with a smile on her face, playing the role of a mood maker for the national team.
Lee Hae-in drew pictures of the Korean national team players ahead of the tournament and presented them as gifts.
In a recent interview with Yonhap News, Lee Hae-in said, “I usually relieve stress by drawing webtoons.”
As the captain of the national team, Cha Jun-hwan got the center of gravity right.
In an interview with the ISU after completing the short program on the 14th, he said, “Before coming here, I asked my colleagues what they thought about the team trophy, and we said that since this is our first competition, we will skate happily while having fun.” said.
“Our team is the youngest,” he said. “We are young, passionate and very excited.”
The Korean national team has the youngest average age (20 years old) among the six teams participating in this tournament.
Cha Jun-hwan and Lee Hae-in, who finished the 2022-2023 season perfectly, return to Korea on the 17th and start preparing for the next season.
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