Through Feb. 16 (Korea time), South Korea has won one silver and two bronze medals across six short track events at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics.
Lim Jong-eon opened the medal count with bronze in the men’s 1,000 meters. Hwang Dae-heon added silver in the men’s 1,500, and Kim Gil-li took bronze in the women’s 1,000, giving South Korea three medals overall.
But a gold medal has yet to come. With only three events remaining — the women’s 1,500-meter individual race and the men’s and women’s relay events — there is speculation South Korea may not surpass the two golds it won at the Beijing Games four years ago.
The men’s team has already completed its individual events without winning a gold. It is the third time South Korea’s men have gone without an Olympic individual gold, after the 2002 Salt Lake City Games and the 2014 Sochi Games.
The women’s team is also under pressure. After missing gold in the 500 and 1,000, only the 1,500 remains in the individual program. If South Korea fails to win that race as well, it would mark the first time in Olympic history that the country wins no gold medals in both men’s and women’s individual short track events.
The absence of a dominant star has added to the challenge. Choi Min-jeong, the team’s ace who defended South Korea’s pride with back-to-back Olympic golds at Pyeongchang 2018 and Beijing 2022, has struggled in individual events at this Olympics.
As South Korea has stumbled, rivals have surged. The Netherlands, once known mainly for speed skating, has made rapid gains in short track and has broken South Korea’s hold on the top step. The Dutch have swept up four gold medals at these Games, setting a new national record for most Olympic golds in the sport.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.