Sports Briefs

TENNNIS

Chung Hyeon pulls out of Wimbledon over injury

Korean tennis player Chung Hyeon has pulled out of next week’s Wimbledon tournament with nagging ankle problems.

IMG Korea, Chung’s agency, said late Friday that Chung hasn’t fully recovered from his ankle injury and will not compete in the third Grand Slam tournament of the season, set to begin on Monday.

This is the third straight Wimbledon that Chung will miss because of an injury. The 22-year-old also missed last month’s French Open with the same ankle issues.

He hasn’t played since the Mutua Madrid Open on May 7.

The world No. 22 was seeded 26th for Wimbledon, which made him the first Korean to be seeded at a Grand Slam event. He also would have been seeded at the French Open if not for his last-minute withdrawal there.

At the season’s first Grand Slam event, the Australian Open in January, Chung made a Cinderella run to the semifinals, where he retired against the eventual champion Roger Federer due to blisters on his foot.

IMG Korea said Chung is targeting a return to action during the hard court season in North America following Wimbledon.

FOOTBALL

Taeguk Warriors’ star goalie hopes to head to Europe

After enjoying a star turn at the FIFA World Cup in Russia, Korean goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo is hoping to get calls from some European clubs.

When Korea played its first game against Sweden on June 18, Jo was a surprise starter ahead of the more experienced Kim Seung-gyu and Kim Jin-hyeon. Jo made some spectacular saves, allowing one goal on a penalty kick as Korea went down 1-0.

The starting job remained Jo’s. He was back in net in a 2-1 loss to Mexico, and enjoyed his finest hour in a 2-0 victory over Germany. He was named the Man of the Match after keeping the defending champions off the board.

The unlikely hero is currently playing for Daegu FC in the domestic K League 1, and he is hoping for a chance overseas.

“I’ll keep doing the best I can so I will become more famous and end up playing in Europe,” Jo told reporters after arriving at Incheon International Airport. “I was grateful for the opportunity to play at the World Cup and realize my dream. Hopefully, I’ll have another memorable World Cup the next time around.”

After shutting out Germany, Jo became an overnight sensation on social media, with international fans calling on their favorite European clubs to sign the 26-year-old Korean.

“I’ll try to maintain my form and make sure I won’t let fans down,” Jo added. “It’d be great to see more fans in the stands in the K League.”

SWIMMING

Park Tae-hwan to skip the Indonesian Asian Games

Korean Olympic swimming champion Park Tae-hwan announced Friday he’ll skip this year’s Asian Games in Indonesia, citing his poor form.

“I’ve realized that I am in no shape to post good records,” Park said in a statement released by his agency, Team GMP. “Rather than saying I am retiring, I’d like to take some time to think about my future.”

Park, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist in the men’s 400-meter freestyle, won four races at the national team trials in April, and the Korea Swimming Federation (KSF) on Wednesday placed Park on the team to compete at the Aug. 18-Sept. 2 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia.

Park, 28, is still training in Australia. He said he has never taken more than a week off from training since 2016, but a recent series of practices convinced him that he wouldn’t be able to perform the way he wanted.

Park also said he decided to make his announcement as early as possible, without waiting until he’d return to Korea, in order to give KSF enough time to name his replacement and continue on with the Asian Games preparations.

Park has raced at every Asian Games since 2006 and has won six gold, three silver and five bronze medals.

Yonhap