The world was astonished "Horrible accident" → Cross ligament rupture → Giving up the final round, Lee Seung-hoon said, "It's hard to accept, but I'll overcome it bravely."" [Milan Olympics]

*This content was translated by AI.

Lee Seung-hoon (21, Korea National Sport University), who became the first Korean freestyle skier to reach the halfpipe final at the Winter Olympics but had to end the Olympics early due to an unexpected injury, is moving with his eagerness for the dream stage and a positive attitude even in the worst situation.

Lee Seung-hoon finished 12th out of 12 in the men's halfpipe final of freestyle skiing at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics at Lvigno Snowpark, Italy on the 21st (Korea time).

Lee Seung-hoon, the first gold medalist in Korean freestyle skiing at the 2025 Harbin Winter Asian Games, advanced to the final with 76.00 points in the preliminary round on the 20th, ranking 10th out of 25 players, but was hampered by unexpected injuries.

An accident occurred during a training session before the start of the finals. While practicing his 1,800-degree technique, Lee crashed his right knee into a pipe wall and collapsed.

The pain was severe, but I couldn't give up easily. He gave up the first period and waited for his condition to improve after treatment, but his injury did not improve and he eventually chose to withdraw from the second and third periods and eventually headed to the emergency room.

The result was shocking. It wasn't just about giving up the Olympics. Lee Seung-hoon was found to have ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, damaged outer cartilage, and bruised outer bone. It is a big injury that requires surgery and it is unclear how long it will take to completely come back.

He also rushed to report Lee Seung-hoon's injury overseas. In particular, British media The Sun said, "Winter Olympics ski star Lee Seung-hoon suffered a 'horror crash' during practice just before the final, and the medical staff was dispatched," adding, "Lee Seung-hoon, lying still on the course, seemed to be in severe pain." The 21-year-old this year left the stadium on a stretcher with his hands wrapped around his face.

It was a long-cherished performance for Lee. "I'm really happy to be in the final," he said. "It's like a dream come true to represent Korea on this level of stage and reach the finals for the first time in this event," he said. I couldn't give up more easily because it was a stage I was so desperate for.

Lee expressed his feelings through his social networking service (SNS). He said, "All the schedules in Milan have come to an end. "I thank you so much for waiting for and supporting the final game," he said. "I started the final training at night with my right shoulder, which was injured while fighting fever and body aches from the morning of the preliminary final. During practice, he was carried away because he thought his knee was injured due to a landing mistake. However, it seemed to get better quickly, so I went back up to ride the third run because there were people who waited and looked forward to it, but the knee injury was worse than I thought, so I decided to go to the hospital," he said.

The moment I fell, I expected a negative result, but I couldn't put it down easily. Lee Seung-hoon said, "I didn't want to give up the Olympic final stage that I really dreamed of. I prepared for this and worked hard, so I wanted to show you all of me in the final, so I wanted to show you. I really did my best to prepare for the Olympics so that I didn't have any regrets. I really wanted to play without regret, and I wanted to show myself prepared," he said. "I think it's too hard to accept that I have to send my first final stage because of this unfortunate incident. However, injuries can happen to athletes, and I'm trying to take them well within a short time and rehabilitate hard to see the next one," he said.

"I think I've grown a lot both as a player and as a person while preparing for this Olympics," he said. I learned that what I can't do is my effort and experience, and that's why I can take a better look at myself and understand myself, he said. "I wanted to be a proud friend, son, acquaintance, disciple, and a proud player, but I think I'm a little disappointed."

Finally, Lee Seung-hoon said, "I will recover vigorously. "Thank you for watching the freestyle ski halfpipe at the Milan Winter Olympics," he said, adding, "Lee Seung-hoon, 12th place in the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics."

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*This content was translated by AI.