South Korean women’s handball star Ryu Eun-hee (Gyorgy, Hungary) is fighting through an injury in her fourth Olympic appearance.
Ryu, who will be competing in her fourth Olympics since London 2012, is the only European player on the team.
The most senior member of the team, she broke her left finger during a team game last month.
“Actually, I’m still in pain,” said Ryu, who wore a protector on her left finger when the team left for a European training camp on Aug. 8. ‘They say it’s not a fracture, but they say it’s a torn ligament,’ she said after training at a practice facility in downtown Paris, France, on Sept. 23 (local time).
However, the left-handed Ryu Eun-hee said, “It’s actually more comfortable to play with (the fourth and little fingers) tied together like this,” and looked ahead to the first match against Germany on Friday.
In recent years, the phrase “fighting through injuries” has been criticized as outdated, but it’s hard to dissuade Ryu from competing in what could be her last Olympics, saying that her health comes first.
The Korean women’s handball team, which left the country on Aug. 8 and has been training in Spain and the Netherlands, arrived in France on Sept. 19 and moved into the athletes’ village on Sept. 22.
The first game against Germany on the 25th is a crucial match to determine the success of the tournament.
After facing Germany, Slovenia, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, South Korea will have to beat the weaker teams to advance to the quarterfinals.
“The players have prepared hard for the quarterfinals and have a lot of willpower, so we should be able to play a good game if there are no injury problems,” Ryu Eun-hee said, adding, ”We want to show them a winning game.”
Last week, the team lost to the Netherlands in an exhibition match by two goals, but the close match also confirmed the team’s potential for the Paris Olympics.
“We did well in that game, and the two games we played in Spain before that weren’t bad,” Ryu said, adding that the team’s confidence is rising as they are playing better and better.
“Coming into the athletes’ village, I can feel the realization of the Olympics,” Ryu said, adding, ”The weather is cool, so there is no discomfort in the village.”
France, in particular, is where Ryu first played in a European league.
“I’m not familiar with France, even though I haven’t been here before when I played in France,” said Ryu, who signed with Paris 92 in 2019 and played for two seasons.
Having fulfilled one of his career goals by winning the European Champions League with his team last month, he is now looking forward to pursuing his remaining goal: an Olympic medal.
His best Olympic finish was fourth in London 2012.
“All the players have been running without much time to rest,” Ryu said, adding, ”We will go to the Olympics with the determination to give it our all on the field.” 안전한 파워볼사이트