“I’ve Been Waiting 21 Years” Golden High Kick Lightning Shot Captain
After dominating the world stage for two years in a row, Lim Tae-gyun (27, Goyang City Hall), the captain of the Sepaktacraw Korea team, has set sail for conquest at the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Tekong, the centerpiece of the team as he orchestrates the entire team from the center of the arena, vowed in a phone interview on Jan. 1 to “lead the team and make history by reaching the highest podium in 21 years since the 2002 Busan Asian Games,” just as the title ‘captain’ implies.
“Team spirit is important in netball. To win, you need to be able to manage the game,” said Lim, who emphasized the role of Tekong. “A single block can make a big difference. If one person is embarrassed because of a mistake, it will have a bad effect on everyone, so I will encourage, help, and move towards the goal.”
His confidence is based on recent international results. In July, the South Korean team won the quad event at the Sepaktakraw World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, with an upset victory over favorite Indonesia. It was their second consecutive gold medal in the event after winning their first ever gold last year. They also won a bronze medal in the team event, which consists of three regu (three-man) matches.
“The World Championships, where Brazil and the United States also compete, is the second biggest event after the Asian Games,” said Lim. “At that time, we beat strong teams from Indonesia to Myanmar and Vietnam. In the quad, we are proud to be the best in the world.”
As for the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, where he won bronze, he said, “I didn’t have a lot of international experience and I was new to the team, so I didn’t focus on the nerves. If I had a few more tricks up my sleeve, or if I was as good as I am now, the result would have been different,” he said. “The current national team is composed of young players, so there is an atmosphere that we can beat any opponent with our energy.”
The chemistry between Goyang City Hall teammate Lim Tae-gyun and killer striker Sun Woo-young-soo (28) is the team’s biggest weapon. “From the technical part of exchanging serve tosses to the timing of knowing each other’s condition and energizing each other, we were able to sweep the international tournaments,” said Lim Tae-gyun. “We are developing our skills through competition with high school juniors who don’t have much difference in skill in the same position.”
Lim, who gave up playing soccer in middle school due to a cruciate ligament injury, found Sepaktakraw and went from strength to strength, earning the Taekwondo mark upon graduation from high school, and now, in his mid-20s, is on the verge of qualifying for his second Asian Games. “For him, the Asian Games are like the World Cup or the Olympics,” he said. “Even if you’re good, you can’t qualify unless you’re lucky with timing and luck, so he’s very determined.”메이저놀이터
“We’re aiming for gold in the quad, where Thailand, the world’s strongest team, is not participating, and a medal in the team event, where they are,” he said. “We are full of confidence after winning the championships. We will use this as a foundation to perform well and introduce Seppaktakraw to the public.”