For Ki Bo-bae, the gold in women's individual archery at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics would have meant so much to history.
She would have become the first archer to capture two gold medals in two straight Olympics. A South Korean woman has won every individual gold but one since 1984 but mainly because of the depth in the national talent pool, no one has won in consecutive Olympics.
And Ki certainly had her chances. In the semifinals against teammate and eventual champion Chang Hye-jin, Ki couldn't take advantage when Chang shot a 3 early on. Ki herself scored a 6 later, which allowed Chang to reach the gold medal match.
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Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald |
In the blustery conditions at Sambodromo, Ki said she just wasn't herself.
"I am disappointed that I couldn't compete to the best of my abilities," Ki said. "But it's a bittersweet feeling. Now that it's all over, I am relieved."
She said her bronze medal is no less valuable than any of the three Olympic titles she's won so far.
"Early on, I did think about winning my second straight gold here," she said. "But this year, I hadn't won an individual medal at international events. I tried not to put too much pressure on myself, and I stopped thinking about the gold."
Asked why there has been no back-to-back South Korean individual champion, Ki said, "If we weren't competing against each other, it would have been possible."
"We all survived the tough national team trials," Ki added.
"And we can say the Olympics is really the battle amongst ourselves."
Ki was ever the gracious loser and thanked Chang for lifting the pressure off the whole team.
"Hye-jin has such a bubbly personality, and I knew her positive attitude would carry her a long way," Ki said. "I think all of us were under pressure to win the individual gold, and someone had to do it. I'd like to thank Hye-jin for overcoming that burden to win the gold." (Yonhap)
