Jeong Cheol-won, who missed the gold medal due to a moment of inattention, says, "I'm sorry for such a big mistake."
The face of roller skater Jeong Cheol-won (27, Andong City Hall), who won the silver medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, was stiff.
This is because it provided an excuse for a painful comeback defeat in the 3,000m relay finals held at the Qiantang Roller Sports Center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China on the 2nd.
Korea, which was leading in the second half of the game on this day, missed out on winning right before the finish line due to a premature celebration by the last runner, Jeong Cheol-won.
While Jeong Cheol-won raised his arms in anticipation of winning the gold medal, the Taiwanese athlete behind him put out his left foot and crossed the finish line first.
Korea's final record was 4 minutes 5.702 seconds, only 0.01 seconds behind first place Taiwan (4 minutes 5.692 seconds).
Jeong Cheol-won, whom I met after the awards ceremony, bowed his head repeatedly with a sad expression.
Jeong Cheol-won apologized in a calm voice, saying, "My mistake was too big. I'm sorry to my (fellow) players and I'm sorry to the many people who supported me."
He said, "I made a mistake by letting my guard down and not riding until the end. After the game, I said to my teammates, 'We worked hard together, but I'm so sorry.'"
When asked by reporters whether he had misjudged the situation and what lessons he had learned, he replied, "It was a big mistake on my part," and "I feel nothing but sorry."
Due to this painful mistake, Jeong Cheol-won and his colleague Choi In-ho (22, Nonsan City Hall) also missed out on special military service benefits.
Another teammate, Kwang-ho Choi, was originally exempted from military service due to ulcerative colitis and won the gold medal in the men's 1,000m sprint the day before.
Coincidentally, Jeong Cheol-won was the runner-up in the men's 1,000m sprint, 0.002 seconds behind Choi Kwang-ho (1 minute, 29.497 seconds).
After completing the short interview, Jeong Cheol-won left the joint reporting area (mixed zone) while receiving comfort from Choi Kwang-ho in a heavy atmosphere.