Two-time reigning Olympic champion Lee Sang-hwa will be chasing her third world speed skating title in the women's 500 meters in Russia this weekend.
Lee will race at the International Skating Union World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships in Kolomna, Russia.
The women's 500m is set for Saturday.
Skaters will have to race twice, and the combined time will determine the winner.
Lee, the world record holder with 36.36 seconds, won the 500m title in 2012 and 2013 before defending her Olympic gold medal in Sochi in 2014. Last year, however, Lee finished off the podium in fifth while dealing with nagging knee pains.
She's in the midst of a bounceback season, having grabbed four 500m titles on the ISU World Cup circuit.
Lee's chief rival in Russia will be Chinese skater Zhang Hong.
Zhang has also won four World Cup titles in the 500m, but leads Lee in World Cup points, 690 to 680, thanks to additional podium finishes.
Zhang's compatriot, Yu Jing, has two World Cup wins in the 500m this season. Lee, Zhang and Yu are the only skaters to win a World Cup race in that distance this season.
Heather Richardson-Bergsma of the United States, the reigning world champion, has two runner-up and four third-place finishes in the World Cup this season. (Yonhap)
