Kim Jin-soo (wrestler)

Kim Jin-soo (Korean: 김 진수; born May 15, 1974) is a South Korean former amateur Greco-Roman wrestler, who competed in the men's middleweight category.[1] Kim wrestled for the South Korean squad in two editions of the Summer Olympics (1996 and 2000) and came closest to the medal haul in 2000 (finishing fifth overall in the men's 76-kg division). Outside the Olympic career, Kim collected a total of five medals in a major international tournament, including a gold at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan. Worked as a full-time employee for Korean Housing Company, Kim trained throughout his wrestling career for the company's sports club, under his personal coach Kim Chang-duk.

Kim Jin-soo
Personal information
Full nameKim Jin-soo
Nationality South Korea
Born (1974-05-15) 15 May 1974
Seoul, South Korea
Height1.76 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in)
Weight76 kg (168 lb)
Sport
SportWrestling
StyleGreco-Roman
ClubKorean Housing Company Sports Club
CoachKim Chang-duk
Medal record
Men's Greco-Roman wrestling
Representing  South Korea
World Championships
2001 Patras76 kg
2003 Créteil74 kg
Asian Games
2002 Busan74 kg
Asian Championships
1996 Xiaoshan74 kg
1999 Tashkent74 kg
In this Korean name, the family name is Kim.

Kim made his Olympic debut in Atlanta 1996, competing in the men's welterweight category (74 kg). There, he opened his match by easily throwing Sweden's Torbjörn Kornbakk off the mat with a superb 11–0 verdict, but could not overthrow the defending champion Mnatsakan Iskandaryan of Russia in the next round, dropping him out of the winners' circle by a formidable 0–4 decision. Entering the repechage stage, Kim avenged his defeat from Iskandaryan to tame the U.S. wrestler Gordy Morgan with a close 3–2 verdict, before he lost his subsequent bout to Bulgarian opponent Stoyan Stoyanov (5–0) that left him injured and frail at the very end.[2]

At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Kim qualified for his second South Korean team in the men's middleweight division (76 kg).[3] Seven months earlier, he beat Uzbekistan's Evgeny Erofalyov for the top spot at the final match of the second Olympic Qualification Tournament in Tashkent. Kim dominated the three-man prelim pool by subduing Azerbaijan's Khvicha Bichinashvili (3–2) and Turkey's Nazmi Avluca (3–1) to secure a spot for the next round. He fell to his Finnish opponent and eventual bronze medalist Marko Yli-Hannuksela with a score 0–3 in the quarterfinals, but bounced back to forge a powerful 9–0 victory over Sweden's Ara Abrahamian for fifth place in a consolation match, a vast improvement from his previous Olympic feat.[4]

When his nation hosted the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, Kim capped off his sporting career with a golden triumph over Kazakhstan's Danil Khalimov by the delight of a massive home crowd in the men's 74 kg division, having been the last to score in a 3–3 draw.[5]

References
  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Kim Jin-soo". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  2. "Atlanta 1996: Wrestling – Men's Greco-Roman 74kg" (PDF). Atlanta 1996. LA84 Foundation. p. 446. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  3. "시드니올림픽 한국선수단 명단" [List of Korean athletes for the Sydney Olympics] (in Korean). Maeil Broadcasting Network. 4 September 2000. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
  4. "Sydney 2000: Wrestling – Middleweight Greco-Roman (76kg)" (PDF). Sydney 2000. LA84 Foundation. pp. 105–106. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
  5. "부산 Asiad, 남북은 하나 아시아도 하나/김진수·강경일 레슬링 金추가" [Busan Asiad: Kim Jin-soo, Kang Kyun-il added more golds in wrestling] (in Korean). Hankook Ilbo. 5 October 2002. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
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