Sports Briefs

FOOTBALL

Hwang Hee-chan nets his fourth goal of the season

Hwang Hee-chan, forward for Red Bull Salzburg of the Austrian association football club, has already scored his fourth goal of the season on Saturday, leading the club to a 1-1 tie against LASK Linz.

Hwang scored a goal for Salzburg in the 42nd to take an early lead, but Linz quickly responded with a goal in the 56th minute to tie the match. Hwang was substituted out in the 73rd minute. Of the four goals Hwang scored in six matches so far this season, he scored two from the UEFA Champions League match, one from a Cup match and another from the Austrian league match.

During the 2016-17 season, Hwang scored a total of 12 goals and led Salzburg to the regular season victory. In addition to the 12 goals, Hwang scored four additional goals from Europa league matches and Cup matches to conclude his season at a total of 16 goals.

It is likely that Hwang will join the Korean national football team in the upcoming qualification matches against Iran and Uzbekistan, as Hwang played under Shin Tae-yong to lead Korea to the quarterfinals at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

By Kang Yoo-rim

BASEBALL

Kim Hyun-soo leaves Orioles for Philadelphia Phillies

Korean outfielder Kim Hyun-soo has been traded by the Baltimore Orioles to the Philadelphia Phillies.

The O’s sent Kim, left-hander Garrett Cleavinger and international amateur signing bonus pool space to the Phillies on Friday (local time) in exchange for right-handed starter Jeremy Hellickson and cash considerations. Kim, 29, joined the O’s before last season after an All-Star career in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). He becomes a free agent after the current season, and the deal ends a largely frustrating stint in Baltimore for Kim.

TAEKWONDO

World Taekwondo to invite North Koreans to event

World Taekwondo (WT), the official world governing body of taekwondo based in Seoul, said Thursday it plans to invite North Korean officials to its event in South Korea this fall.

WT, led by South Korean president Choue Chung-won, said it plans to send invitations to International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) President Ri Yong-son and Secretary General Kim Sung-hwan - both North Korean - for the 2017 Taekwondo Peace Festival in Seoul. The festival, commemorating Taekwondo Day on Sept. 4, was founded last year to promote peace, sharing and service in the global community.

The WT, previously known as the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF), is sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee. The ITF, based in Vienna, is recognized by the North Korean government.

Ri traveled to South Korea last month for the WT’s world championships in Muju, North Jeolla Province, along with the ITF demonstration team.

Yonhap