Hope for the semifinals of Korean goalball collapsed in front of the 'strongest enemy', but hope was confirmed

Sep 04, 2024

The Korean women's goal ball, which returned to the Paralympic stage after 28 years, was frustrated in the quarterfinals. It was the Turkiye 'world's strongest' that stopped the Korean women's goalball.

South Korea scored three goals in the quarterfinals of the women's goal ball at South Paris Arena 6 in Paris, France, in the early morning of the 4th (Korea time), but eventually lost 3-6. South Korea will play the 7th and 8th place match against France. Presented by the Korea Sports Council for the Disabled

The Korean women's goal ball, which returned to the Paralympic stage for the first time in 28 years, was frustrated in the quarterfinals. It was the Turkiye 'world's strongest' that stopped the Korean women's goalball.

South Korea scored three goals in the quarterfinals of the women's goal ball at South Paris Arena 6 in Paris, France, in the early morning of the 4th (Korea time), but eventually lost to Turkiye 3-6. For South Korea, ranked 15th in the world, Turkiye, which won the gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, was a difficult wall to overcome.

South Korea, which passed the group stage with one win, one draw and one loss (four points), did well against Turkiye. The early atmosphere was not bad. Captain Kim Hee-jin (30), Seo Min-ji (23), and Shim Seon-hwa (32, Seoul Metropolitan Government) were the first to come out. Although he allowed Sebda Altnoruk to score his first goal 53 seconds into the game and gave up an additional goal at 2:33, Seo Min-ji scored a goal at 5:35 to chase 1-2.

The atmosphere of being able to catch up was being created. For about a minute, he worked hard to score, led by Seo Min-ji. But the Turkiye blocked it all. Then, Turkiye was the defending champion and the world's No. 1 player. I threw a ball. However, when the real power of Turkiye came out, the gap began to widen without hesitation. At 6:29 and 6:42 respectively, Gul Fatma rolled up and scored consecutive goals to Altnoluk. In the end, the first half finished 1-4.

There was still room for chase. A three-goal difference can be redeemed. However, he also allowed Seveda to score his fourth goal of the day 58 seconds into the second half. The score widened to 1-5. Shim Sun-hwa recovered one goal at 5:15 into the game. After that, the goal was rarely scored, but he gave up a goal to Verpin Altan with 1:47 left in the end. Still, Korea didn't give up. After focusing on the game until the end, Shim Sun-hwa scored a penalty shot with 7 seconds left to recover one goal. It was not possible to change the outcome of the game, but it was a goal that left a trail of fighting spirit on the Paralympic stage after 28 years.

Coach Jung Eun-sun said after the game, `We can give the strong team the first goal, but the loss came out too early. If the loss came out a little late, the opponent would have been more impatient." "Still, it was the best performance I've ever played against Turkiye. It was not too one-sided, and they scored a field goal and succeeded in a penalty draw, facing each other until the end. I've seen hope."

The women's goalball team consisting of Kim Hee-jin, Seo Min-ji, Shim Sun-hwa, Kim Eun-ji (33), and Park Eun-ji (25) finished second at the Portuguese goalball world championships in December 2022, confirming their advance to the Paralympic finals early on. It was an emotional result. It was the first time in 28 years since the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics that I went to the Paralympics. However, he was unable to go higher because he met the strongest enemy in the quarterfinals.

'Captain'Kim Hee-jin said "It was a miracle and a dream time because it was the first opportunity in 28 years"It's been 28 years since I came out, but I'll participate in every Paralympic Games from now on and play hard so that I and my juniors can promote our national goalball."

Goalball is the only sport that only blind people can play, and all participating players, regardless of the degree of visual impairment, use blindfolds to play in fair conditions. Two teams of three players will attack and defend the opponent's goalpost with a sound ball for 12 minutes each in the first and second half.

South Korea, which fell from the quarterfinals, will play 7th to 8th places in the same venue on the 4th due to the influence of its qualifying performance in the round robin method. South Korea beat France 6-1 in the group stage.

wman@sportschosun.com