Choi and Kim fighting to keep Korea’s Olympic Short Track dominance alive
05 Jan 2026
The Republic of Korea have long reigned supreme in Short Track at the Olympic Winter Games. They topped the medal table at Beijing 2022 and PyeongChang 2018, while Sochi 2014 was bossed by Viktor Ahn – a Russian skater, but born in Korea.
Historically, they have 26 Olympic gold medals – more than double the tally of China, in second place, with 12.
The nation goes into Milano Cortina 2026, however, in an unfamiliar position - as underdogs.
Canada have cleaned up in the men’s, women’s and team ISU Crystal Globes over the last couple of seasons, and the spotlight is on Ice Maples William Dandjinou, Courtney Sarault and Steven Dubois this time around.
It would be unwise, however, to rule out another historic performance from the Koreans. Hwang Dae Heon is looking to defend his 1500m title, while phenomenal 17-year-old newcomer Rim Jongun made a huge impact this season and is capable of taking this form to the Games.
It is perhaps among the women’s line-up, however, that there lies the most hope. At the heart of this is a pair of skaters with a unique dynamic: friends, rivals and teammates Choi Min Jeong and Kim Gilli.
‘Choi keeps us calm’
At 27, Choi is already one of the greatest skaters in Short Track history. She is a four-time overall World Champion, and has three Olympic gold medals: 1500m and 3000m relay in 2018; and 1500m in 2022.
Winner Choi Min Jeong and bronze medalist Kim Gilli show off their medals in the 1500m at the 2025 Short Track World Championships © ISU
Kim, 21, meanwhile is a 1500m World Champion who won the Crystal Globe in 2023/24. Choi has long been her idol.
“I have always looked up to Min Jeong and she has taught me so much,” said Kim.
“She is a great skater and she has been a mentor to me. She has a great mentality and keeps us calm.
“We have all watched her do so well at the last two Olympic Games, and now we want to do it again, with her.”
Choi returns the compliment. “I learn a lot from Gilli,” she said. “We are very good friends and I think our personalities always balance each other out.
“Gilli is always smiling and optimistic, maybe I am a bit more serious and more pessimistic. But we support each other a lot and we make each other laugh and eat good food together.”
Choi (left) and Kim (center) lead Canadian skater and Olympic rival Courtney Sarault in the 1500m World Tour final in Gdansk © ISU
Choi, who made her senior debut on the ISU circuit over a decade ago in 2014, is still highly motivated.
“I have been skating for a long time, and sometimes I feel like I live at the training centre, all I see is the rink,” she said.
“It can be tiring. But I want to continue to prove that I can compete at this level, and I want to go to Milano and try to win a title for three Olympic Games in a row.”
The pair, especially Choi, are huge stars back home – but both of them prefer to stay out of the limelight and play with their dogs.
“I do get recognised sometimes,” said Choi. “But I am mainly at the rink or at home. I live with my parents, I have a dog, I watch TV shows. I try to stay relaxed, because skating takes up a lot of physical and mental energy.”
Keeping Korea at the top
As previous Korean teams have proved – and the current Canadian line-up confirms – working well as a unit can be the key to individual success.
“The rest of the world is improving, but we are always helping each other improve, too,” said Kim.
Choi agrees: “I feel like the rest of the world has partly caught up with Korea in many ways now,” she said.
“Korea has been dominant for a lot of years, we have always had good skating technique, but in terms of power, now we are not way ahead of the others. All the other nations have been getting stronger.”
Squad goals: Choi (left) and Kim (center) teamed up with Park Jiwon to win the World Tour Mixed Team Relay in Seoul in December 2024 © ISU
Choi has talked previously about working on physical strength with high intensity weight exercises and training with male athletes to help improve her speed.
“Gilli and I can help each other, and working together we can raise how competitive Korea is,” she said.
“It is also good to have young athletes like Rim coming through. It shows that Korea is still producing young talent, and he also has a great positive energy which helps our whole team.”
Both racers head to the Games confident.
“I feel good, and I’m very excited for my first Olympic Games,” said Kim.
“It will be really helpful having Min Jeong with us, because she knows all about how the Games work.”
Choi adds: “Other nations have improved, but I have lots of experience, and I feel like I have prepared well for the Olympics. I’ve had some good results, some good speed, and I have confidence for the races ahead.”
