South Korean rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon-jae won a bronze medal Sunday at a World Cup gymnastics meet in Penza, Russia, bringing home the nation’s first medal in the competition.
The 17-year-old won the bronze in the hoop final with 28.05 points at the Word Cup series. This is the first time a Korean athlete has brought home a medal in a series sanctioned by the International Gymnastics Federation.
Son Yeon-jae
The Korean gymnastics poster-child also fared well in other disciplines, scoring 28.125 in the ball, 27.675 in the club, and 28.50 in the ribbon. Son finished fourth overall at the series with a total of 112.2 points, breaking both national and personal records for rhythmic gymnastics here.
Previously, Son advanced to 10th place in the individual all-around at a World Cup series and this is the first time that the athlete has advanced to the final four in any discipline.
Son was also the first Korean to bring home an international medal at a discipline final, winning a bronze medal, also in the hoop, at the Grand Prix in Moscow in February.
Sunday’s victory comes after Son won a bid for the 2012 London Olympic Games by taking 11th place during the 2011 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Montpellier, France.
Son will continue to compete in the series in Sofia, Bulgaria next month.
Son, a native of Seoul, currently trains in Russia.
Azerbaijan’s Aliya Garaeva took home the gold with 28.675 points and Russia’s Daria Dmitriyeva won silver at Sunday’s World Cup gymnastics meet.
By Robert Lee (
robert@heraldcorp.com)