The joint Korean women's ice hockey team, assembled for the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics, had their first practice session together Sunday.Following the recent inter-Korean agreement and a stamp of approval from the International Olympic Committee, the two Koreas have put together a unified team of 35 players for the Olympics -- 12 North Koreans have joined 23 South Koreans. (Yonhap)South Korea's head coach, Sarah Murray, is in charge, while North Korea has also sent its own coach, Pak C

Jamaica, led by a trailblazing women's bobsleigh team, will be among the first nations to move into the athletes' living quarters for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, officials said Sunday.According to PyeongChang's organizing committee, Jamaica will be joined by Brazil, Romania and Belgium for the very first welcoming ceremony at PyeongChang Olympic Village at 1 p.m. on Feb. 5. The committee said the athletes will start arriving in the Olympic host city on Wednesday. (Yonhap)There are two

The controversy surrounding the South Korean Olympic alpine skiing team selection will spill into court, a source revealed Sunday.The source, who is close to alpine skier Kyung Sung-hyun, said the athlete will file a court injunction against the Korea Ski Association on Monday to suspend its national team selection committee.The KSA announced a list of four alpine skiers -- two men and two women -- for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Wednesday.The KSA had picked nine skiers for a trainin

The 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games are certain to be the largest Winter Olympics in history in terms of participating nations and athletes, with the deadline to confirm entries fast approaching, organizing officials said Sunday.According to the organizing committee, nearly 3,000 athletes from 95 nations have registered to compete at the Feb. 9-25 Olympics. The deadline to finalize entries is 6 a.m. Monday South Korean time."The exact numbers of nations and athletes will be determined on Monday, b

For South Korean alpine skier Jung Dong-hyun, the Winter Olympic Games of the past only bring sad memories.Jung has established himself as the top Asian alpine skier after winning gold medals from two consecutive Asian Winter Games.The 29-year-old, who began skiing at the age of three, started competing internationally in 2004.Jung, however, hasn't had much luck with the Olympic Games.Jung was able to compete at the 2006 Torino Olympics, but later had to give up his opportunity after he didn't a

The International Olympic Committee cleared 169 Russian athletes Sunday to compete at the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics, although the list likely doesn't include Korean-born short track star Victor An.In December, the IOC banned Russia from PyeongChang 2018 for state-sponsored doping and said it would only allow clean athletes to compete as neutrals, each formally referred to as an "Olympic Athlete from Russia (OAR).""Following a detailed and comprehensive invitation process, the IOC conf

South Korean figure skater Lee June-hyoung ranked 14th out of 24 at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Taipei on Saturday.Lee scored 211.86 points overall to lead the South Korean contingent at the annual competition. Lee had 69.93 points in the short program and added 141.93 points in his free skate. He topped 200 points for only the second time in his senior career, which began in 2015. His career high remains 222.89 points, which he tallied at the Nebelhorn Trophy last Septem

The South Korean men's national football team opened the new year with a victory over Moldova on Saturday.South Korea, 59th in the latest FIFA rankings, collected a 1-0 win against world No. 166 Moldova in a friendly match at Mardan Stadium in Antalya, Turkey, thanks to Kim Shin-wook's second half goal.The game was South Korea's first of three friendlies scheduled in Antalya, Turkey, where their pre-World Cup training camp is located. The Taeguk Warriors, led by head coach Shin Tae-yong, will ne

President Moon Jae-in personally congratulated South Korean tennis sensation Chung Hyeon on Saturday, noting his achievements have given great joy and pride to the South Korean public.YonhapIn a congratulatory letter, the president said Chung has "made another piece of history in South Korean sport and given great pride and joy to the people."The president went on, "I greatly praise you and am so proud of you."Chung, 21, defeated top-class tennis players to reach semifinals in the Australian Ope

South Korean figure skater Choi Da-in earned her best score of the season at an Olympic tune-up competition on Friday.Choi earned her season-best 190.23 points overall to finish fourth at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Taipei. She scored 127.93 points in Friday's free skate, good for third in the segment, after ranking fifth after the short program with 62.30 points.Choi fell just shy of her personal high, 191.11 points, set at last year's world championships (Yonhap)Kaori S

North Korea's figure skating pairs team of Ryom Tae-ok and Kim Ju-sik won the bronze medal Friday at the last-minute international rehearsal before the next month's PyeongChang Winter Olympics.At the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, held in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei, the duo earned a personal-best total of 184.98 points to finish third. The U.S. team of Tarah Kayne and Danny O'Shea won gold with 194.42 points, followed by another American tandem, Ashley Cain and Timothy Leduc,

MELBOURNE -- Roger Federer hailed Chung Hyeon as a future top 10 player Friday after the South Korean's Australian Open came to a painful end at the hands of the Swiss maestro.The defending champion was leading 6-1, 5-2 and in full control when Chung retired with foot blisters, bringing the curtain down on a breakout tournament in which he announced himself as a future star in the making. The 21-year-old sent 12-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic packing in the quarter-finals, although the Se

South Korean tennis sensation Chung Hyeon bowed out to Roger Federer in the Australian Open semifinals Friday, ending a historic run that has captivated a nation hungry for new sporting heroes.The 58th-ranked Chung withdrew against the second-ranked Federer with blisters on his left foot, when the score was 6-1, 5-2 in favor of the Swiss great.Chung was the lowest-ranked man to make the Australian Open semifinals since Marat Safin 2004. The 21-year-old knocked out six-time Australian Open champi

Intel will host an international “StarCraft II” tournament in South Korea’s eastern county of PyeongChang in the lead up to the 2018 Winter Olympics that kicks off in the region next month.The Intel Extreme Masters PyeongChang tournament for Blizzard Entertainment’s real-time strategy game will take place Feb. 5-7 at the Olympic Village in PyeongChang. Intel has yet to confirm a venue. A total of 18 StarCraft II players who have passed the online qualifiers compete in the main tournament for a c

The Korea Skating Union said Thursday that it has decided to permanently expel a coach for beating Olympic short track speed skating champion Shim Suk-hee.The skating authorities convened an independent disciplinary committee of eight experts to make a decision on the coach, whose name has been withheld from the media. (Yonhap)“We have decided on the heavy punishment of permanent expulsion after we discussed the gravity of the issue following statements from the attacker,” Kim Sang-kyum, the cha