[PyeongChang 2018] South Korea places 7th with 5 gold, 8 silver and 4 bronze medals

South Korea set its own record for the 2018 Winter Olympics with 17 medals in total: five gold, eight silver and four bronze.

It was the only Asian nation to rank in the top 10. For Korean spectators, the best part of the games in the past two weeks were the unexpected wins in previously little-known disciplines, such as the gold in men’s skeleton and the silver in women’s curling. This was the first Winter Games in which Korea scored medals in disciplines other than ice skating.

The country also clinched surprise silver medals in men’s parallel giant slaslom snowboarding and 4-man bobsleighing.

This was the first time for any Asian to score a medal in skeleton and snowboarding.

Korea ranked seventh in the number of gold medals and sixth in the combined total for all medals.

Gold (5)

- Men’s 1,500-meter short track speedskating: Lim Hyo-jun

Lim Hyo-jun clinched the first gold medal for a Korean athlete in 2018 Winter Olympic Games in the 1,500-meter short track speedskating(Yonhap)

Lim Hyo-jun wins gold in the men's 1,500-meter short track speedskating (Yonhap)

- Women’s 1,500-meter short track speedskating: Choi Min-jeong

Choi Min-jeong won gold medal in 1,500-meter short track speedskating (Yonhap)

- Women’s 3,000-meter short track relay: Shim Suk-hee, Choi Min-jeong, Kim Ye-jin and Kim Alang (Lee Yu-bin)

Gold medalists for women`s 3,000-meter short track relay: Shim Suk-hee, Choi Min-jeong, Kim Ye-jin, Kim Alang and Lee Yu-bin (Yonhap)

- Skeleton: Yun Sung-bin

Yun Sung-bin was the first Asian man to win a medal in skeleton. Before Yun, no one from an Asian nation had scored a medal in the discipline, let alone gold. Yun`s win was also South Korea`s first medal in a discipline other than ice skating. (Yonhap)

- Men’s mass start speedskating: Lee Seung-hoon

Lee Seung-hoon nabbed gold in men's mass start speedskating (Yonhap)

Silver (8)

- Women’s mass start speedskating: Kim Bo-reum

Despite brewing scandals about her possibly bullying a fellow speedskater, Kim Boreum went ahead to run in the women`s mass start speedskating and brought back home a silver medal (Yonhap)

See related news: South Korea’s female skaters under fire for bullying
Witch hunt or mob justice? Inside South Korea’s world of ‘inseong’ trials of athletes

- Men’s 500-meter speedskating: Cha Min-kyu

Cha Min-kyu clinched silver in men`s 500-meter speedskating (Yonhap)

- Men’s 500-meter short track speedskating: Hwang Dae-heon

Hwang Dae-heon won silver in men`s 500-meter short track speedskating (Yonhap)

- Men’s team pursuit speedskating: Lee Seung-hoon, Kim Min-seok and Chung Jae-won

From left: Lee Seung-hoon, Kim Min-seok and Chung Jae-won (Yonhap)

- Women’s 500-meter speedskating: Lee Sang-hwa

Lee Sang-hwa, South Korea’s two-time defending Olympic champion, won silver in what could possibly be her last Olympics (Yonhap)

See related news: Olympic fans touched by Lee Sang-hwa’s friendship with her Japanese rival Nao Kodaira

- Men’s parallel giant slalom (alpine snowboarding): Lee Sang-ho

Lee Sang-ho is the first Asian to win a medal in men`s parallel giant slalom (Yonhap)

- Women’s curling: Kim Eun-jung, Kim Kyeong-ae, Kim Yeong-mi and Kim Seon-yeong (Kim Cho-hi)

South Korea`s women`s curling team climbed up to the finals in a succession of wins, amassing international fans along the way. Fondly dubbed "Team Kim," due to all four players` last names being Kim, and "Garlic Girls," due to the players` hometown Uiseong`s main produce of garlic, the South Korean team played against Sweden in the final game and lost 8-3, landing a hard-earned silver and a thunderous applause from the spectators. (Yonhap)

See related news: Silver medalists ‘Garlic Girls’ spark curling sensation across Korea and beyond

- 4-man bobsleigh: Won Yun-jong, Seo Young-woo, Kim Dong-hyun and Jun Jung-lin

Another case of the underdogs making it to the top -- South Korea`s 4-man bobsleigh team landed a silver, for the first time for the country. (Yonhap)

Bronze (4)

- Men’s 1,500-meter speedskating: Kim Min-seok

Kim Min-seok won a bronze in the men`s 1500-meter speedskating. The 18-year-old is now the first Asian skater to make a podium finish in the men's 1,500m distance in the Winter Olympics. (Yohap)

- Men’s 1,000-meter speedskating: Kim Tae-yun

Kim Tae-yun, the bronze medalist in the men`s 1,000m, will aim for gold at Beijing 2022. Kim is currently 23. (Yonhap)

- Men’s 500-meter short track speedskating: Lim Hyo-jun

Gold medalist for 1,500-meter short track speedskating, Lim Hyo-jun also won a bronze in men`s 500-meter short track speedskating (Yonhap)

- Men’s 1,000-meter short track speedskating: Seo Yi-ra

Seo Yi-ra clinched the bronze in men`s 1,000-meter short track speedskating (Yonhap)

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)