'Fire Direct Man'Kim Woo-min's pleasant 銅 speech."I woke up in the morning and found myself smiling."
Jul 28, 2024
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Kim Woo-min advanced to the semifinals with a time of 1:46.64 in the second group of the men's 200m freestyle preliminary round at the Paris Olympics at La Defense Arena on the 28th (Korea time). Hwang Sun-woo (Gangwon Provincial Office) reached the semifinals with a time of 1:46.13 in Group 4 of the preliminary round.
Kim Woo-min, whom I met in the mixed zone after the game, said "I'm tired and tired, but the lingering effect remains that much. When I woke up in the morning, I found myself smiling and prepared 200m," he smiled.
Kim Woo-min won her first Olympic medal in her career by finishing third overall in the 400m freestyle with a time of 3:42.50 the previous day. It is the first time in 12 years that Korean swimming has won a medal at the Olympics since Park Tae-hwan at the 2012 London Olympics.
Kim Woo-min said " (Hwang) Sun-woo and other team members congratulated me a lot. I think my parents cried watching the game. In fact, I almost cried at the awards ceremony, but Martens (who won a gold medal) cried a lot, so I held it in." Then " (People around me)I couldn't reply to each one because they sent me so many congratulations. I want to say thank you"I expressed my appreciation.
Did Kim Woo-min sleep with the bronze medal around his neck? He almost fell asleep on foot, fortunately leaving it next to the bed. If I win a medal with Hwang Sun-woo (my roommate), I think I'll be able to sleep with a medal," he said with a smile. In addition, "Rather than being careful about who's next to us, we cheer, encourage, and cheer each other up."
Kim Woo-min immediately competed in the 200m freestyle preliminary event without even enjoying his first Olympic medal in his career. I wasn't alone this time. Hwang Sun-woo also competed in the same event. The two advanced to the semifinals, with performances of 12th and 4th place in the preliminary round, respectively. The semi-final will be held at 3:46 a.m. on the 29th.
Kim Woo-min said of Hwang Sun-woo's race, "It was good. If that's the case in the morning, I think I'll look different in the afternoon"I think I'll be in the same group with Sunwoo in the semifinals, but I think I can play with confidence if I have a Korean player in the same group. If I do well, I think I can both make it to the finals," he said, stressing that he would work together to win a medal together.
Kim Woo-min boldly gave up his main event, 800m freestyle, to focus on the 400m freestyle, 200m freestyle, and 800m relay. Kim Woo-min said "I personally have greed for 800m freestyle, but I shouldn't damage my team with my greed. The 800m freestyle is a long-distance swimming, so it consumes a lot of energy. I thought it was right not to run." Then "It is true that I was greedy. Whether it was a record-breaking or a place in the finals, it was well worth pursuing," he said, expressing regret over the schedule.
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