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| Photo provided by the Seoul Sports Council for the Disabled |
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| Photo provided by the Seoul Sports Council for the Disabled |
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| Photo provided by the Seoul Sports Council for the Disabled |
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Veteran Blind Skier'Hwang Min-gyu (29, guide Kim Jun-hyung, Seoul) won two Alpine skiing medals at the 22nd National Sports Festival for the Disabled.
Hwang Min-gyu won gold medals in a row in the alpine ski men's competition and men's slalom at Alpensia Resort in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province on the 13th. The gap with the runner-up was 9 seconds in the competition and 18 seconds in the rotation, showing an overwhelming race. Starting with the first gold medal at the 13th National Winter Sports Festival for the Disabled in 2016, Hwang Min-gyu has won seven consecutive gold medals until this year's competition (excluding two unhosted and one pilot program), and has won two gold medals in five of them. Hwang Min-gyu's goal was "Let's just do what we practiced" right after winning two awards. Doing as I had done, I got good results" expressed his feelings.
Hwang Min-gyu was an athlete in middle school, setting Korean records for high jump and long jump, and stood out in various events due to his outstanding athleticism. In particular, he fell in love with skiing, where he could feel the pleasure of speed, and his skills grew rapidly as he participated in rookie training since 2016, and since then, he has written a milestone of winning gold medals for seven consecutive tournaments.
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Sports Council for the Disabled |
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For Hwang Min-gyu, skiing is a feeling of self-esteem that allows him to talk about his disability without any burden. "The speed I feel when I ski gives me strength. It is the driving force to overcome all difficulties."
Participating in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Paralympics and the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympics, Hwang Min-gyu now looks at the Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics, which will be held a year later. He has recently won the podium in international competitions, including the third place at the 2023 World Championships and the silver medal at the 2024 FIS Parasky Games. Hwang Min-gyu said, `I am thinking that next year's Winter Paralympics will be my last. I will think this is the best time and wear a medal around my neck. We ask for your continued support."
Reporter Jeon Young-ji sky4us@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
