LEFT: South Korean national short track speed skater Sim Suk-hee (on the far right) participating in women's 3000 relay at 2018 Winter Olympics. January 10, Gangneung Ice Arena. RIGHT: BTS' Jungkook. Photo from YONHAP and BTS' Twitter @BTS_twt
The stars at '2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics' from around the world love K-pop as much as we do. Here are some of the athletes who identified themselves as K-pop fans.
K-pop is indeed "Korea's secret weapon"
1. Evgenia Medvedeva→EXO
Evgenia Medvedeva. Photo from YONHAP
Photo from SM Entertainment
Evgenia Medvedeva, an 18-year-old from Russia and ranking No.1 in ISU (International Skating Union) World Standings for Ladies Single Skating, is a well-known EXO fan. Winner of ladies single figure skating at the 2018 Winter Olympics with a personal best and world record of 81.06 points, Evgenia stated, "Thanks to EXO, I was able to perform successfully at the Winter Games."
2. Chloe Kim→CL
Chloe Kim secures her gold medal at the women's halfpipe competition at 2018 Winter Olympics. February 13, Phoenix Snow Park, Pyeongchang. Photo from YONHAP
CL. Photo from YG Entertainment
Chloe Kim, the 18-year-old American winning the women's half-pipe competition, says she enjoys listening to the former 2NE1 member CL's tracks.
Evgenia's EXO and Chloe's CL are set to appear at the closing ceremony of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Could these Olympic stars meet their own sweethearts?
3. Lim Hyo-jun→BLACKPINK's Jennie
Lim Hyo-jun, gold medalist of men's 1500m short track, waving to the crowd. February 10, Gangneung Ice Arena. Photo from YONHAP.
Photo from Instagram @blackpinkofficial
Lim Hyo-jun, the gold medalist of men's short track 1500m, reveals that he's a fan of BLACKPINK's Jennie. He made an appearance on a TV show after securing his gold medal, and, revealing that he "liked Jennie," requested BLACKPINK's 'As If It's Your Last' to be played.
4. Lee Yu-bin→BTS
Lee Yu-bin. Photo from News1
Photo from Big Hit Entertainment
The youngest of South Korea's short track speed skaters, the 17-year-old Korean Lee Yu-bin is an ARMY. She says that she spends her free time listening to BTS tracks. She expressed her wishes to "go to a BTS concert after the Olympics."
Photo from Big Hit Entertainment
K-pop boosts athletes' morale as well, and athletes from all around the world marched into the stadium with K-pop streaming in the background. To quote Huff Post U.S., "with fire songs like 'DNA' playing on an international stage, who could blame them for being so pumped?"
K-pop, indeed, is South Korea's "secret weapon of its own," as quoted by CNN.
By Gothesun and Suwon Han voomvoomk@gmail.com
