▲ Lee June-seo of South Korea (L) celebrates after winning his semifinal heat in the men's 1,500m short track speed skating race at the Beijing Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 9, 2022. (Yonhap)
▲ Lee June-seo of South Korea (C) falls between Sebastien Lepape of France (L) and Kota Kikuchi of Japan during the men's 500m heat in short track speed skating at the Beijing Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 11, 2022. (Yonhap)
▲ Lee June-seo of South Korea (C) is grabbed by Wu Dajing of China (R) during the semifinals of the men's 1,000m short track speed skating race at the Beijing Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 7, 2022. (Yonhap)

(Olympics) short tracker-competition

(Olympics) Beijing 2022 a confidence builder for budding short tracker

By Yoo Jee-ho

BEIJING, Feb. 15 (Yonhap) -- Given his gimpy ankle, South Korean short track speed skater Lee June-seo may not be available for the men's 5,000m relay final at Beijing 2022 on Wednesday.

Unless Lee returns to the ice at Capital Indoor Stadium on Wednesday night, the first Winter Olympics for the 21-year-old will be over.

He participated in the men's 500m, 1,000m and 1,500m races but came up empty-handed. But not all was lost for Lee, who said he has learned a great deal about himself in Beijing.

"I've built more confidence in myself," Lee said after cutting his training session short Monday evening with lingering ankle problems. "I think I can trust myself more and be more aggressive on the ice."

If anything, Lee may have been overaggressive at times. He was penalized in the 1,000m semifinals and the 500m heats for making contact with another skater -- with the former sparking outrage in South Korea over biased officiating. Lee reached the 1,500m final, which featured a record 10 skaters, and finished fifth.

Lee said it was after that 1,500m race that he decided he has to be more assertive.

"It was such a crowded race, and I went up against some of the best in the world," Lee said. "I was intimidated even before the race. I have to be better in that regard. I felt like I didn't skate to the best of my ability there.

"With the lessons I've learned here, I should be able to perform better at the next Olympics," Lee added.

He said he was particularly impressed with how the top athletes meticulously prepared for the Olympics. They might have conserved their energy for earlier, lesser competitions so that they would peak in time for Beijing.

"That's why they are Olympic athletes," Lee said. "I felt like anyone (from the 1,500m final) could have won the gold medal and it wouldn't have been such a strange thing."

Lee might have become a household name, however briefly, in light of the officiating controversy, but Lee himself was quick to point out he hasn't done anything noteworthy.

"I really want to do something memorable in the relay," he said. "I'll try to get my body ready for that race."

(END)

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