Former South Korean Olympic table tennis champion Ryu Seung-min has won his bid for International Olympic Committee membership, an impressive career transition for the former teen prodigy.Among 23 candidates, Ryu finished second in the voting by 5,185 of 11,245 participating athletes at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics to earn one of four seats available on the IOC's Athletes' Commission. (Yonhap)Ryu earned 1,544 votes, while the winner, former German fencer Britta Heidemann, had 1,603 votes. Hungari

South Korea will select a new airport site to replace the one currently in operation in Daegu by the end of this year as an official analysis gave the relocation project a green light, the defense ministry said Thursday.In an assessment carried out by 21 experts, the government's plan to relocate the Daegu International Airport to another city within the Gyeongsang region garnered 800 points out of 1,000, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement. The airport, located within the city

Prosecutors said Thursday that the former chief of South Korea's English-language television channel, Arirang TV, has been cleared of allegations that he embezzled company assets.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said it could not find anything suspicious regarding Bang Suk-ho using company assets for his own profit.The 58-year-old was embroiled in a scandal earlier this year as he was suspected of spending some millions of won on business trips and forging documents to use company

Rep. Moon Jae-in, a former leader of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea and presidential aspirant, voiced hopes on Thursday that opposition parties would join forces to win next year's presidential election.Attending a ceremony to mark the seventh anniversary of the death of former President Kim Dae-jung, Moon said that although the opposition parties competed against each other in the parliamentary elections in April, the presidential race would bring them together so as to prevail over

A non-commissioned officer was found dead on Thursday with an apparently self-inflicted bullet wound in his head at a Marine Corps unit on a western border island near North Korea, military investigators said.The body of the 23-year-old staff sergeant, whose name was withheld, was discovered about 5:43 a.m. near the unit's gym by his comrade, who left the barracks to patrol the coast of Yeonpyeong Island.When the comrade found the soldier dead, the staff sergeant had a K-1 rifle in his left hand

South Korea's government said Thursday it has confirmed 35 additional victims of toxic humidifier disinfectants, including 17 deaths, as a series of trials is under way against the manufacturers of the product and company executives.Following the Ministry of Environment's announcement, the total number of victims confirmed by the government rose to 256.The ministry has been reviewing the cases after receiving 752 applications last year. It was the third time for the ministry to go through the vi

South Korean shares ended higher on Thursday helped by increased buying by foreigners and pension funds. The local currency climbed against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 11.72 points, or 0.57 percent, to 2,055.47.The rise followed overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.12 percent, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbing 0.03 percent."Robust earnings of Samsung Electronics Co. also helped the main index, and eas

A local court on Thursday acquitted a former Navy chief who was indicted on charges of unlawfully granting favors to a local firm in the process of supplying parts to the country's indigenous salvage ship, citing a lack of evidence. The Seoul Central District Court found the former Navy chief Jung Ok-keun, not guilty of allegations that he pressured his subordinates to forge a document to help the firm win the contract.Jung held the top naval post from 2008 to 2010, The 3,500-ton Tongyeong was f

한국 팬들 사이에서 ‘영국남자’라는 별칭으로 활동하는 유튜버 조쉬가 17일 스마트폰 카메라 앱 ‘스노우’를 사용하는 영상을 공유했다.　　이 카메라앱은 우스꽝스럽거나 귀여운 사진 효과를 가능케해 국내 스마트폰 유저 사이에서 선풍적 인기를 끌고 있다. 　　조쉬는 ‘스노우’앱을 처음 접한 영국인 친구들의 반응을 생생하게 기록한 영상으로 웃음을 줬다. 　　영국인들은 특히 이성과 포옹하는 듯한 사진 효과, 로보트 가면이 얼굴에 합체되는 효과 등에 놀라워하며 폭소를 터뜨렸다.  (유튜브 캡쳐) (유튜브 캡쳐) (유튜브 캡쳐)　　한편, 일각에선 ‘스노우’가 미국의 ‘스냅챗’앱을 표절했다는 논란도 있다. 　　약 4년 전 출시된 사진·동영상 기반 메신저 ‘스냅챗’은 ‘스노우’가 소개한 다수의 필터를 먼저 개시한 바 있다.　　사진에 찍히는 두 사람의 얼굴을 바꿔놓는 ‘페이스스왑’ 기능, 입을 벌리면 무지개가 쏟아져 나오는 효과 등의 필터로 큰 인기몰이를 했었다. 　　CEO 에반 스피겔은 지난 달 슈퍼

‘꿈틀이’를 기억하는 어른들을 위한 과자가 있다. 　　바로 미국 제과회사 ‘잇 슈가(It Sugar)’의 거대 지렁이 젤리다.　　이 거대 젤리는 66센티미터 길이에 1.3킬로그램의 무게로 ‘세상에서 제일 큰’ 식용 지렁이라고 광고되고 있다. 　　 (잇 슈가)　　이 기발한 제과회사는 열두 가지 맛 거대 젤리 곰도 출시했는데, 이 거대 젤리곰 하나가 약 1,400개의 일반 젤리 곰과 같은 중량이라고 한다. 　　 (잇 슈가)　　이 외에도 스시 모양 ‘스시캔디’, 속옷 모양 ‘식용 팬티 캔디’ 등 재미난 과자 리스트가 있다.　　약 15만원 가격대의 초대형 사이즈 ‘파티용 거대 비단뱀 젤리’도 있다. 　　 (잇 슈가)　　‘잇 슈가’는 미국 전역에 가게를 가지고 있으며 온라인 주문도 가능하다. 　　(khnews@heraldco　

Lotte Cinema, one of the biggest multi-screen cinema chains in South Korea, opened a theater on Thursday that exclusively screens old and new Chinese films.The chain will use one of the 12 screens in the World Tower venue in Songpa, southeastern Seoul, to show Chinese flicks for the next year. In June, Lotte Cinema signed a memorandum of understanding with the Korea China Culture Center for the project.The Silk Road Theater will mainly show Chinese film classics starting with "King Of The Childr

Increasing demand of botox and fillers from overseas markets have contributed to the rapid growth of South Korean pharmaceutical companies, industry sources here said Thursday.Medytox Inc. and Huge Inc. logged record performances in the second quarter on the back of robust overseas sales of botulinum toxin and hyaluronic acid fillers used for cosmetic purpose, they said.Botulium toxin, more commonly known as botox, is used to fill wrinkles by temporarily relaxing facial muscles that cause lines,

South Korea will decide next week whether to allow Google to export government-supplied map data outside the country, officials said Thursday. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which supervises mapping policy, will hold a meeting with officials from foreign, defense and other-related ministries next Wednesday and make a decision after the meeting, according to them.On June 1, Google requested the Korean government to export the map data, and the government must make a decision

Hyundai Rotem Co., the train-making unit of Hyundai Motor Group, said Thursday that it has signed a deal to supply trains to Australia, worth up to 1.1 trillion won ($995 million).Under the agreement signed with the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure of New South Wales, the South Korean firm will supply 512 double-deck passenger railcars, worth 889.4 billion won.The deal also carries an option for the New South Wales government to order an additional 136 cars, making the entire deal worth

South Korea is in discussions with its allies on how to counteract North Korea's claimed resumption of weapons-grade plutonium production, a government official said Thursday.On Wednesday, Japan's Kyodo News reported North Korea had restarted its plutonium production for nuclear weapons use, citing its interview with Pyongyang's Atomic Energy Institute. The North Korean institute said producing highly enriched uranium is necessary for nuclear weapons and power, highlighting that it has no plans

리우 올림픽에서 18일 (한국시간) 태권도 첫 금메달을 거머쥔 김소희 선수가 경기 이전 홍보 모델로 나섰던 ‘위스퍼’ 생리대 브랜드 광고 영상이 다시금 조명 받고 있다. 　　인터뷰 형식으로 진행된 이 광고에서 김소희 선수는 여성 운동선수라는 이유로 받았던 편견 어린 시선과 그것을 극복하기 위해 가졌던 마음가짐, 노력 등에 대해 진솔하게 나누었다. 　(유튜브 캡쳐)　김 선수는 초등학교 3학년 때부터 태권도를 시작해 중학교 1학년 때 선수 생활을 시작했다. 당시 ‘여자니까 조심해라’, ‘여잔데 무슨 운동이냐’ 등의 반대에 부딪혔지만 굴하지 않았고, 오늘날 올림픽 경기에서 금메달을 수상하기까지 왔다. 　　김 선수는 자신이 태권도 하는 모습에 사람들이 ‘멋지다. 오, 강한데?’라는 반응을 주면 좋겠다고 바랐다.　　　　해당 위스퍼 생리대 광고는 ‘여자답게 멈추지마’ 캠페인의 일환이다. 　　경기 전부터 광고영상을 통해 김 선수를 알게 됐다는 팬들은 인터넷을 통해 “태도, 관점이 멋지다“, ”금

South Korea's military said Thursday that it will carry out the largest-ever artillery drill near the border with North Korea to demonstrate its determination to retaliate against future provocations. The drill will take place in the afternoon, one day before South Korea marks the first anniversary of the North's shelling of areas south of the Demilitarized Zone that separates the two Koreas."Some 300 artillery pieces from 49 artillery battalions are planning to take part in the live-fire exerci

A majority of North Korean defectors are embroiled in money-related civil suits in South Korea as they are not accustomed to money transactions in the capitalist society, a report showed Thursday.The Korea Hana Foundation, the government's agency that supports North Korean settlement in the South, provided free legal services to former North Koreans involved in 142 cases in 2014, according to the report released by the state-run Korea Development Institute.Out of the total, 81 cases were civil s

South Korean stocks extended gains late Thursday morning helped by eased worries about a possible US rate hike and rebound in the shares of Samsung Electronics Co. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 4.01 points, or 0.20 percent, to 2,047.76 as of 11:20 a.m.The rise followed overnight gains on Wall Street.The Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.12 percent, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbing 0.03 percent.Large-cap stocks were mixed across the board. Market be

President Park Geun-hye will attend the Group of 20 (G20) summit in China and forums with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations early next month, her office Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday.Park will fly to Hangzhou on Sept. 4 for the two-day summit of the advanced and emerging economies, which will be held under the main theme, "Towards an Innovative, Invigorated, Interconnected and Inclusive World Economy."At the G-20 summit, Park, along with world leaders, will discuss "inclusive and innovati