"I will definitely beat my older sister when I face her." GS Caltex's Park Eun-bin, the youngest daughter of an Olympic volleyball national team player and a mother, writes V-League history as the first "three sisters selected in the 1st round"

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

"I really want to win when I meet my older sister."

The youngest daughter of a father who is a wrestling Asian Games medalist and a mother who is a former Olympic volleyball national team player entered the professional stage following in her sisters' footsteps. Park Eun-bin (18), an outside hitter from Sunmyeong Girls' High School, completed a historic record as the first set of three sisters to all be selected in the 1st round of the rookie draft in V-League history.

Park Eun-bin was selected by GS Caltex with the 7th overall pick in the 1st round at the 2026~2027 Korea Volleyball Federation (KOVO) Women's Rookie Draft held on the 28th at the Mayfield Hotel in Gangseo-gu, Seoul.

With this, Park Eun-bin became a 1st-round pick in professional volleyball alongside her eldest sister Park Eun-seo (23) and second sister Park Eun-ji (22). Park Eun-seo was selected by Pepper Savings Bank AI Peppers with the 2nd overall pick in the 1st round of the rookie draft for the 2021~2022 season. The following year, setter Park Eun-ji joined KGC Ginseng Corporation (now Cheongguang) as the 4th overall pick in the 1st round of the 2022~2023 season. Currently, Park Eun-seo plays for SOOP Supers, and Park Eun-ji plays for the Pohang City Sports Council volleyball team.

It is the first time since the launch of the V-League that three sisters have each received the honor of being selected in the 1st round. The family's background is also unique. Their father, Mr. Park Woo, is a bronze medalist in the Greco-Roman 97kg class at wrestling at the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games. Their mother, Eo Yeon-soon, served as a women's volleyball national team player at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She played as an outside hitter for Korea Expressway Corporation and currently serves as a KOVO referee committee member.

Meeting the press immediately after the draft, Park Eun-bin said, "I am still lacking in many ways, but I am truly grateful to GS Caltex for picking me so early in the 1st round," adding, "Since I am the last athlete in my family, my family members have supported me a lot and also worried about me. But it seems things turned out well, which is fortunate," smiling.

Regarding the first record of three sisters, she also expressed joy, saying, "I heard a lot of such stories while participating in the draft. It is wonderful that all three of us can go to the 1st round." She then expressed gratitude, stating, "My eldest sister told me not to be nervous and to do well. My younger sister also supported me. My mother often gave advice when I encountered difficult parts or unknown things while playing volleyball."

Interestingly, Park Eun-bin did not dream of being an attacker from the beginning. Rather, she wanted to become a setter like her second sister Park Eun-ji. Park Eun-bin said, "Actually, I wanted to be a setter, but because my height grew rapidly, I automatically became an attacker," adding, "When I was young, I grew 10cm each year for three years. Now it seems good that I became an attacker."

The period when she began to grow significantly was during her second year of high school. Park Eun-bin reflected, "As I entered my second year, many of the attacking sisters graduated. I had more opportunities to hit the ball, and by approaching games with a sense of responsibility, I think I was able to grow a bit more."

GS Caltex head coach Lee Young-taek (49) also paid attention to her growth trend. The coach said, "Park Eun-bin has good attacking power and decent physical conditions. I think her skills have grown a lot since her second year," adding, "She is currently slightly lacking compared to her sister, but there is definitely the possibility that she can do better than her sister."

However, he placed more emphasis on long-term development rather than immediate performance. The coach explained, "I heard there is a slight injury in her shoulder area. I think it is something that can be managed sufficiently," adding, "Rather than using her immediately, I plan to take time to gradually build up her body and develop her."

GS Caltex also secured Oh Hae-sol (18), an outside hitter from Sunmyeong Girls' High School, with the 8th overall pick in the 2nd round that day. Two classmates will begin their professional careers together at GS Caltex, which won the women's championship finals last year. The coach expressed satisfaction, saying, "Both players were high on our selection list." Specifically regarding Oh Hae-sol, he explained, "She was a player I viewed very favorably in her first year of high school. However, she underwent surgery for an ACL injury in her second year and had a one-year gap. I judged that Park Eun-bin is currently slightly better in terms of game performance, so I chose her first."

Park Eun-bin has another dream to achieve in the professional league. That is to face off against her sisters on the same court. She stated, "There is an age difference with Eun-seo sister, so I have never stood on the same court with her. My sisters are born one year apart, so I often saw them saying they would win every time they played each other. I was disappointed that I could not do that, but now I can," declaring her determination to "definitely want to win when I meet my sisters."

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original