"99% disappointed rather than disappointed" Kim Min-seo, No. 14, shed tears that she endured. "Experience, not a disaster caused by excessive greed," promised four years later [the scene of Milan]

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Min-sun (Uijeong City Hall), a Korean female speed skater, shed tears that she endured at the end.

Kim Min-sun clocked 38:01 in the women's 500m final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina D'Ampezzo Winter Olympics at Milan Speed Skating Stadium in Italy on the 15th (local time), finishing 14th overall.

Femker Kok of the Netherlands won the gold medal with a time of 36.49 seconds. The silver medal went to Utah Leyrdam (37.15 seconds, Netherlands) and the bronze medal to Miho Takagi (37.27 seconds, Japan).

Kim Min-sun, who started in the 10th group in-course, raced with Serena Pergeri of Italy on her back with the support of the home crowd. He passed the first 100m section in 10.61 seconds, and then failed to increase his speed in the final spurt, leaving a regret.

For Kim, this was the third Olympic challenge after 2018 Pyeongchang (16th) and 2022 Beijing (7th). In particular, his skills grew rapidly immediately after the Beijing Games, ranking No. 1 in the ISU World Cup rankings in the 2022-2023 season, and breaking the personal record (36.96 seconds), raising expectations as the successor to Lee Sang-hwa, the "Eating Empress."

The recent flow was not bad. Kim Min-sun won the gold medal with a time of 38.24 seconds at the Harbin Winter Asian Games last year, and had finished preheating by winning the bronze medal (37:835) in the fourth World Cup tournament in December after overcoming the slump early this season. However, in the Olympic finals, he failed to win the prize, keeping a record of 38 seconds.

Kim Min-sun, who met in the joint coverage area (Mix Zone) after the game, said heavily, "I feel 99% disappointed rather than sad to the point where I don't know what to say first."

"There were so many frustrating and difficult parts in preparing for this season," he said, adding, "The Olympics are a difficult stage to prepare with 100% confidence, but I think the realistic concerns in the preparation process made it harder for themselves."

The biggest regret was also the "first 100m." Kim Min-sun said, "The 100m was always the problem except when it was the best, but this season's record also bothered me," adding, "The overall game management was solved only when the initial record was shortened, but the result was also affected by the disappointment from the beginning."

He also expressed regret that he suffered ups and downs ahead of the Olympic season. "There were so many times this season when I felt like I was going to collapse psychologically," he confessed, crying. "I was able to come this far without giving up because my family and people around me trusted and supported me every time," he said, wiping away tears.

When asked, "Do you have any regrets about seeing the good records of the competitors?" Kim Min-sun said, "I'm more disappointed because they are the players I've won," but added, "On the other hand, I wonder what kind of preparation Femke Kok made for him to shorten the record like that, and I got motivation to say, 'I can do it, too.'"

Leaving behind the disappointment, Kim Min-sun is determined to tighten the skate strap again. Kim Min-sun said, "Four years after Beijing have been like a gift and a dream," adding, "I'm sorry for this result, but I think it's an experience, not a disaster caused by excessive greed. At the next Olympics, I will prepare for a race without regret with 100 percent confidence," he said.

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*This content was translated by AI.