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BASEBALL

Choo Shin-soo gets on base for nine consecutive games

Although Choo Shin-soo of the Texas Rangers didn’t have a hit throughout the game against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday, he managed to get on base for nine consecutive games, as he was given three walks. The Rangers won the game 4-2.

During the game, Choo appeared as the Rangers’ second batter and right fielder. Continuing to get on base, Choo’s seasonal batting average is now at 0.253 as of Tuesday.

And Oh Seung-hwan of the St. Louis Cardinals appeared in the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium in Missouri, on Tuesday as a closer. Though Oh managed to pitch a scoreless inning in the ninth, giving up one hit, the Cardinals still lost 8-5. Despite Cardinals’ loss, Oh lowered his ERA from 3.10 to 3.00 for the season.

By Kang Yoo-rim



TAEKWONDO

World championships will be largest in its history

This year’s taekwondo world championships to be held in Korea will be the largest in the competition’s history, organizers said Wednesday.

The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) said 917 athletes from 183 nations have signed up for the June 24-30 WTF World Taekwondo Championships in Muju, some 240 kilometers (149 miles) south of Seoul.

Both the numbers of participating nations and athletes are all-time highs for an event that began in 1973. The 2009 tournament in Copenhagen had been the largest with 928 athletes from 142 nations.

This will be the seventh WTF worlds in Korea and first since 2011.

The WTF said Dina Pouryounes Langerroudi of the Netherlands, originally from Iran, will be the first refugee athlete to compete at the world championships. She will participate in the women’s under-46 kg (101 pounds) event under the WTF flag.

This year’s championships will feature all eight gold medalists from the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics, including two from Korea - Kim So-hui in the women’s 49kg and Oh Hye-ri in the women’s 67kg. In Muju, Kim will compete in the 49kg class and Oh in the 73kg.

On the men’s side, two bronze medalists from Rio, Kim Tae-hun and Lee Dae-hoon, will compete in the 54kg and 68kg categories.

The WTF will have its General Assembly on the eve of the championships to elect its president. Korean Choue Chung-won, the incumbent WTF leader, will run unopposed for his fourth term.

Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, will attend the closing ceremony.



BASKETBALL

Andrew Wiggins to visit Korea next month

Former National Basketball Association (NBA) Rookie of the Year Andrew Wiggins will visit Korea next month, officials here said Wednesday.

Sportswear manufacturer Adidas will bring Wiggins, who is with the Minnesota Timberwolves, to Korea from July 21 to 24. Adidas said the Canadian basketball star’s visit is solely designated for Korean fans as he will not make a stop in other Asian cities.

“It’s meaningful that Wiggins will visit only for Korean fans, and it’s not just one of those parts of Asian tour visits,” an official with Adidas said in a release. “The player also has high expectations for his first Korea visit, so we will prepare various programs and activities with local fans.”

Wiggins, who was selected first overall in the draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014, will hold clinics for young players and take part in a 3-on-3 game here, according to Adidas. The 22-year-old small forward joined the Timberwolves following a three-team trade in summer 2014 and was named the NBA’s Rookie of the Year for the 2014-15 season.

For this past season, he averaged 23.6 points with four rebounds per game in 82 games.

Wiggins’ visit comes ahead of another NBA star’s visit next month. The U.S.-based athletics apparels brand Under Armour previously announced that the two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors will stay in Korea from July 26 to 28 as part of the company’s summer Asian tour.

Yonhap
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