South Korea football coach Shin Tae-yong said Friday that his side are ready to defeat Japan and defend their regional title. South Korea will wrap up the East Asian Football Federation E-1 Football Championship with Japan on Saturday at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo. Shin's side can only win the tournament by beating hosts Japan. The men's national team opened the tournament with a 2-2 draw with China followed by a 1-0 win over North Korea. Japan have two wins after they beat North Korea 1-0 and e

South Korea will host Russia in the countries' final men's hockey tune-up game next February before the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.Scheduling the match was part of a cooperative agreement reached between the national hockey federations of the two countries in Moscow on Thursday.The Korea Ice Hockey Association said it signed a memorandum of understanding with the Russian Ice Hockey Federation at VTB Ice Palace in Moscow. Both countries are participating in the Channel One Cup tournament th

South Korea's medal hopefuls for next year's Winter Games said Thursday avoiding injuries is their most important task at the moment.With the first Winter Olympics in South Korea less than two months away, homegrown athletes said they're focusing on maintaining their health and addressing their shortcomings.Short track speed skaters Shim Suk-hee and Choi Min-jeong said they're trying to escape injuries these days. Both Shim and Choi have given impressive performances this year, winning a combine

South Korean speed skater Kim Bo-reum said Thursday her primary goal ahead of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics is to recover from a lower back injury.Kim, the reigning International Skating Union World Cup women's mass start overall champion, is considered one of the South Korean medal hopefuls at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Though her physical condition hasn't been at its best recently, the long-distance speed skater said she will be fit before the Olympics."I think I'm about 70 percent fit," Kim

South Korea's two leading short track speed skaters on Thursday won a prestigious award for local female athletes.Shim Suk-hee and Choi Min-jeong were named co-winners for the grand prize at this year's MBN Women Sports Awards in Seoul. The annual award, hosted by local cable broadcaster MBN, and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation, was created in 2012 to honor female athletes in the country.Previous winners include golfer Park In-be

The South Korean baseball club Lotte Giants said Thursday they've agreed to terms with former major league pitcher Felix Doubront.The Korea Baseball Organization team said the 30-year-old left-hander has agreed to a one-year deal worth $1 million, including a signing bonus of $100,000. Doubront is scheduled to undergo a physical in the United States on Friday (local time).Doubront, a native of Venezuela, joins American left-hander Brooks Raley in the Giants' rotation. Earlier this week, right-ha

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean attacker Son Heung-min has extended his goal scoring streak to four games. Son scored the second goal in the Spurs' 2-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion in their English Premier League match at Wembley Stadium in London on Wednesday (local time). It was Son's fifth EPL goal of the 2017-18 season. He also has three goals in the UEFA Champions League. Son has now scored in four straight matches for Spurs, starting from his goal against Watford on Dec. 2. He also fou

South Korea suffered a 4-2 loss to Canada in a pre-Olympic men's hockey tournament in Moscow, after squandering an early lead against the heavily favored opponent.The 21st-ranked South Korea saw their 2-1 first-period lead over world No. 1 Canada evaporate at the Channel One Cup at VTB Ice Palace in the Russian capital on Wednesday (local time). With Canada down early, Marc-Andre Gragnani and Wojtek Wolski delivered consecutive goals in the second period to salvage the victory. Forward Kim Sang-

The reigning South Korean baseball MVP Yang Hyeon-jong picked up another major trophy on Wednesday, completing an unprecedented sweep of the sport's top individual awards.The Kia Tigers left-hander was one of 10 recipients of the Golden Glove in the Korea Baseball Organization, as he capped off the most memorable season of his 11-year career. Yang won a whopping 323 out of 357 votes cast by baseball writers, photojournalists and broadcasters.Yang won the regular season MVP award last month, afte

The annual ice climbing contest of Yeongdong County, North Chungcheong Province, has been called off for four consecutive years, and the prospect of this year’s event taking place remains murky.Although the early cold snap has quickened the freezing of ice, the confirmed outbreak of highly pathogenic bird flu in the nearby regions is casting doubt over the outdoor contest slated for Jan. 20 and 21 at a wall beside the Chogangcheon River in Yulri, Yongsan-myeon. The Yeongdong County officials sai

South Korean baseball's reigning Rookie of the Year Lee Jung-hoo got a hefty raise Wednesday.The Nexen Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization announced they've inked Lee to a new one-year deal worth 110 million won ($101,200). The 19-year-old outfielder made the minimum KBO salary of 27 million won in 2017.And the deal was a bargain for the Heroes, as Lee established new rookie records with 179 hits and 111 runs scored, while leading all freshmen with a .324 batting average. Lee was the runaw

PyeongChang welcomed Russia's decision on Tuesday to back its athletes who will compete at next year's Winter Olympics in South Korea as neutrals.Lee Hee-beom, the top organizer for PyeongChang 2018, said it was "fortunate" that the Russian Olympic Committee decided to allow those who choose to compete in PyeongChang, in light of the recent International Olympic Committee ban on Russia over state-sponsored doping.The IOC suspended the ROC with immediate effect last Tuesday, and said only individ

Veteran South Korean speed skater Lee Seung-hoon said Tuesday conditioning will be a key to his preparations for next year's Winter Olympics.Lee has put together a strong season so far, grabbing three gold medals at four stops during the International Skating Union World Cup Speed Skating season. Two of the titles came at Lee's main event, the mass start.The mass start, which will make its Olympic debut next February at PyeongChang 2018, is a niche event in speed skating. Unlike other individual

South Korean speed skater Lee Sang-hwa said Tuesday she remained undaunted by the impressive streak of Japanese star Nao Kodaira.The rivalry in the women's 500 meters has been decidedly lopsided in Kodaira's favor this season. So far during the International Skating Union World Cup Speed Skating season, Kodaira has won all seven 500m races, while Lee has grabbed five silver and one bronze medals.It doesn't bode well for Lee's chances of winning her third straight Olympic gold in the 500m at the

South Korea men's football coach Shin Tae-yong said Tuesday using a back three system was key to his side's victory over North Korea at a regional tournament.Shin's side won the inter-Korean football match 1-0 at the East Asian Football Federation E-1 Football Championship at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo, thanks to an own goal by North Korean defender Ri Yong-chol.South Korea came up with a 3-4-3 formation against North Korea, changing from their 4-2-3-1 system in the tournament opener against Chi