Olympic shooting medalist open to extracurricular activities to promote her sport

South Korean Olympic shooting medalist Kim Ye-ji said Tuesday she is open to engaging in extracurricular activities as long as they help raise the profile of her sport.

Kim emerged from the recent Paris Olympics as one of the most popular South Korean athletes, not because of her silver medal in the women’s 10-meter air pistol event, but thanks to a clip from an earlier competition that went viral on social media during the Olympics.

Kim, 31, became an overnight sensation when Elon Musk, owner of X, commented on a posting on his social media platform: “She should be cast in an action movie. No acting required!”

Kim ended up signing with a Seoul-based casting agency called Plfil on Monday. The company said the athlete had a series of corporate endorsement opportunities lined up and that it would also help Kim net roles in films or TV series.

Kim, who had earlier said she wasn’t interested in appearing in any films, changed her stance Tuesday.

“I’ve received offers for commercials and appearances in TV shows. I understand a U.S. company also reached out. As long as they don’t affect my competition and training schedule, I’ll do them,” Kim said at a press conference during the Bonghwanggi National Shooting Competition in Naju, some 280 kilometers south of Seoul. She said she is scheduled to have a photo shoot for a global luxury brand Friday, a day after the end of the competition.

“I’d like the general public to take more interest in shooting. I signed with the agency because I didn’t think I could handle all of those offers myself,” Kim added.

The viral video shows Kim breaking the world record in the 25m pistol during a World Cup event in Baku in May, all the while maintaining a cool, detached look that many felt gave off an action star vibe.

Kim said she understands that even for Olympic medalists in a sport like shooting, popularity can be fleeting. But she will try to stay in people’s consciousness as long as she can with her activities away from the range.

“I felt that there was only so much I could do to promote this sport just by going to competitions and setting records,” Kim said. “Even with my Olympic medal, my name will be forgotten soon. But if I do appearances, then I think people will remember me and they will be reminded of the sport of shooting.

“Shooters in my generation have not enjoyed the same kind of benefits that athletes in more popular sports have,” Kim continued. “I hope younger shooters will have to chance to compete in a better environment.”

As for potential criticism she may face for spending too much time doing those other activities, Kim said, “I’ve made this decision, and I will have to live with it. I won’t make any excuse. I will just have to keep performing as well as I can.”

Kim stressed that her focus on her day job will not waver.

“We have the world championships next year, the Asian Games two years later and the Los Angeles Olympics four years later. My goal is to outdo myself every time,” Kim said. “That’s my only objective.”

Kim said she can sense how much her life has changed over the past several weeks by the number of fans in the stands at competitions and messages she receives on social media.

“Today, I had fans from Seoul and other cities around the country,” Kim said. “And people have sent me messages saying they were inspired to take up shooting because of me and they found new hope. That makes me feel proud. They inspire me, too.”

While Kim may exude some chic vibes on the range with a pistol in her hand, she has also won over fans with her down-to-earth interviews.

“I’ve always been that way. I’ve never thought it was anything special,” Kim said with a smile. “But a lot of people said they like that about me. So I guess that makes me pretty cool.”