(Olympics) More mature and more confident, reigning short track relay champion chases 1st individual gold

▲ South Korean short track speed skater Lee Yu-bin trains at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 2, 2022, in preparation for the Beijing Winter Olympics. (Yonhap)

▲ South Korean short track speed skater Lee Yu-bin (L) leads her teammates during a training session at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 1, 2022, in preparation for the Beijing Winter Olympics. (Yonhap)

▲ South Korean short track speed skater Kwak Yoon-gy (foreground) takes a picture of five members of the women's team after their training session at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 2, 2022. From left: Choi Min-jeong, Park Ji-yun, Seo Whi-min, Lee Yu-bin and Kim A-lang. (Yonhap)

(Olympics) short tracker-competition

(Olympics) More mature and more confident, reigning short track relay champion chases 1st individual gold

By Yoo Jee-ho

BEIJING, Feb. 2 (Yonhap) -- South Korea arrived in Beijing for the Winter Olympics with a modest target of winning one or two gold medals.

Outside observers, though, appear to be more optimistic. In its medal predictions for all events released on Tuesday, the Associated Press had four gold medals pegged for South Korea, including one by short track speed skater Lee Yu-bin in the women's 1,500m.

That's not exactly a bold prediction. Lee was the overall leader in that distance during this past International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup season, on the strength of two gold medals and one silver medal across four competitions.

When told of AP's prediction after her training session on Wednesday, Lee said she appreciated the attention.

"It puts a bit of pressure on me, but it's just a projection at this point," the 20-year-old said. "I am going to embrace this. This is a good confidence boost for me."

Lee was a member of the 3,000m relay title team at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. Still just a raw teenager then, Lee didn't qualify for individual races then, and only got into the relay races. Over the years, though, Lee said she has developed into a much more mature athlete on and off the ice.

"Back then, I barely knew how to prepare myself or how to stay ready for races," Lee recalled. "I only did whatever my coaches told me to do. But now, I can take care of my body better."

South Korea has been the most successful country in Olympic short track history, with 24 gold medals and 48 medals in total. China is a distant second in the gold medal count with 10, while China and Canada are tied for second-most medals overall with 33 each.

With that history comes the inevitable pressure to keep performing at a high level. But Lee said other countries have improved so much that South Korea can no longer be considered the singular power in the sport.

"We haven't dominated World Cup races (in recent years)," said Lee, the only South Korean skater to finish atop the standings in an individual race this past season. "It's not so much about protecting our turf. We have to work hard to take things back from other countries."

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