South Korea, made up of Choi Min-jeong, Kim Gil-li (both Seongnam City Hall), Noh Do-hee (Hwaseong City Hall) and Shim Suk-hee (Seoul City Hall), won the final at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Italy in 4 minutes, 4.014 seconds, finishing first. It was the short track team’s first gold medal of these Games.
South Korea had earlier won bronze in the men’s 1,000 meters by Lim Jong-eon (Goyang City Hall), silver in the men’s 1,500 by Hwang Dae-heon (Gangwon Provincial Office), and bronze in the women’s 1,000 by Kim. The country’s other gold came on Feb. 13 in women’s snowboard halfpipe by Choi Ga-on (Sehwa High School). South Korea’s overall medal total rose to seven (two gold, two silver, three bronze).
The win also highlighted renewed teamwork between Choi and Shim, whose relationship had been strained after a series of incidents that surfaced following the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics. The two had once been placed to avoid each other during relay exchanges, but the mood shifted ahead of these Olympics after captain Choi reached out and Shim responded.
They trained together consistently, and Choi even joined Shim’s birthday party as the team worked to rebuild trust. Their cooperation led to a tactical change: Shim, known for strong pushing power, skated fourth, while the faster Choi led off. The plan was for Shim to drive Choi forward to maximize acceleration.
With five laps left, the team’s strategy paid off. Shim powered Choi forward, and South Korea passed Canada to move into second. Choi held position and handed off to anchor Kim. With two laps remaining, Kim surged on the inside to pass Italy and held on to win.
Afterward, Choi said, “My teammates did so well. I think we got a good result because we could trust each other. I’m happy.” Shim said, “There were many difficult situations while preparing for the Olympics. Still, we endured and stayed united. I could feel that we were preparing while trusting each other. I want to say thank you to my teammates for being here with me.”
The victory again underscored the women’s 3,000 relay as one of South Korea’s most successful Winter Olympic events. Since it became an official Olympic event at the 1992 Albertville Games, South Korea has won seven gold medals in 10 Olympics. The team also erased the disappointment of silver at the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
Choi added another milestone. The gold gave her six career Olympic medals (four gold, two silver), tying the South Korean record for most Olympic gold medals (four) held by Kim Soo-nyung (archery), Jin Jong-oh (shooting) and Jeon Yi-kyung (short track). She also moved into sole possession of the South Korean short track record for most Olympic medals, surpassing Jeon and Park Seung-hi (five each), and tied the overall South Korean record for most Olympic medals across Summer and Winter Games with six.
Host Italy took silver in 4:04.107, and Canada won bronze in 4:04.314.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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