Kim Ha-yoon (23, Anshan City), a member of the Korean National Judo Team in the women’s 78kg and above category, took up the sport at a relatively late age, in the third year of junior high school. She was introduced to judo at a local gym by her PE teacher and quickly became hooked on the sport, rising to prominence in the lowest weight category for women in Korea. Within a year of taking up the sport, Kim was on her way to becoming a national athlete. She went on to attend Samjeong High School in Busan, where she won national titles in all three years, making a name for herself as one of the biggest prospects in Korean judo. Unlike other heavyweight athletes who push through with power, Kim has developed a competitive edge with a variety of techniques. After attending Korea Gymnastics University, she perfected her main wrestling technique, an and-legged walk, and her confidence grew as she finished runner-up at the 2019 International Judo Federation (IJF) Junior World Championships. Due to her inexperience, Kim suffered a training slump in 2020 as the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic spread. Heading into Tokyo 2020 in 2021, Kim’s dreams of competing at his first Olympic Games were dashed when he was narrowly beaten by fellow senior Han Mi Jin (Chungbuk Provincial Government).However, Kim didn’t let that stop her and continued to improve. She grew from this to become a world-class athlete, winning medals at every international event she competed in last year. She won gold at the Portuguese Grand Prix, bronze at the Grand Slam in Ulaanbaatar and bronze at the Grand Slam in Tokyo. This year, she won four podiums, including the Portuguese Grand Prix and the Paris Grand Slam. With her momentum, Kim is one of the favourites for the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. The women’s heavyweight category is a vulnerable one for South Korea, which has never won an Asian Games title, and there were hopes that Kim could win gold for the first time ever. However, things went from bad to worse for Kim when she injured her left knee just before her call-up. The knee injury was devastating for an athlete who specialises in one-legged walking.” He was in such bad shape that he could barely train,” said Kim’s coach, Lee Yong-ho of Ansan City Hall. But Kim continued to train through the excruciating pain. Even in the worst of times, Kim never frowned. She prepared for the Asian Games with her usual bright personality and positive attitude. “She always brings a smile to everyone’s face,” said a team official, adding that she also played a role as an atmosphere maker for the team .Coincidentally, Korean judo was on the verge of its first ever Asian Games no-gold medal until the final day of the individual competition at Hangzhou 2022.Even on the 26th, the Koreans struggled. Even favourite Kim Min-jong (Yangpyeong City Hall) failed to make the final. This left Kim Ha-yoon as the lone finalist, and she went into the final against China’s Xu Shiyan with a heavy responsibility to prevent a ‘no-gold’.Despite the one-sided support of the Chinese home fans, who packed the Xiaoshan Linfu Gymnasium in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, Kim unleashed her full potential. She won 카지노사이트 gold for the first time in her career at the Asian Games.
