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(Olympics) Short tracker willing to put injured hand on line for relay gold

February 14, 2022

South Korean short track speed skater Park Jang-hyuk is a fearless one.

Only a week after suffering several cuts to his left hand in a collision with another skater, Park said he is not afraid to trade his hand for his team’s gold medal in the men’s 5,000m relay.

“My hand is fine. I have no problem pushing my teammates (in relay exchanges),” Park said after a training session Monday, two days before the relay final at Capital Indoor Stadium. “I am not worried about hurting it again. I will put my hand on the line in the race.”

Park Jang-hyuk of South Korea grabs his left hand after being injured in a collision during the men's 1,000m short track speed skating quarterfinals at the Beijing Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 7, 2022. (Yonhap)
Park Jang-hyuk of South Korea (R) injures his left hand as Wu Dajing of China clips him with his skate during the men's 1,000m short track speed skating quarterfinals at the Beijing Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 7, 2022. (Yonhap)

Park Jang-hyuk of South Korea grabs his left hand after being injured in a collision during the men’s 1,000m short track speed skating quarterfinals at the Beijing Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing on Feb. 7, 2022. (Yonhap)

Park sustained those cuts during the quarterfinals of the men’s 1,000m last Monday. Park fell on the ice and skidded toward the padded wall, and Wu Dajing of China, who was coming up from behind, inadvertently clipped Park’s left hand with his skate. Park grabbed his hand in immediate pain and was stretchered off the ice.

The referee advanced Park to the semifinals, but he missed his race. Then Park returned for the 1,500 and later the relay heats.

Park said he considered pulling out of the men’s relay, because he didn’t want to ruin the team’s chances, but Kwak Yoon-gy, the senior member of the team, helped him regroup mentally.

“I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself just because this is the Olympics,” Park said. “I am thinking of this as just another domestic competition.”

South Korea is trying to win its first men’s relay gold since 2006.