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"I believe we selected the best player available with our pick."
The choice of Park Cheol-woo (41), head coach of Woori Card in men's professional volleyball, was resolute. The player chosen with the third overall pick, obtained by overcoming a mere 4% probability, was Jeon Yu-seok (21, Chungbuk National University), known as "Heo Su-bong of Geumsan." A player who once competed as a libero due to his short stature has grown into a 200-centimeter-tall outside hitter, becoming the top priority selection target for professional teams.
Woori Card selected Jeon Yu-seok with the third overall pick in the first round at the 2026-2027 Korea Volleyball Federation (KOVO) Men's Rookie Draft held on the 28th at the Mayfield Hotel in Gangseo-gu, Seoul.
Dramatic luck also followed. Woori Card's probability of drawing the first overall pick was only 4%. They were fifth in line behind Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance (35%), OK Financial Group (30%), Korea Electric Power Corporation (20%), and KB Insurance (8%). However, as a result of the lottery, they ended up exercising their draft rights third, after OK Financial Group and Hyundai Capital.
As expected, Yun Gyeong (20, Inha University), the first overall pick, went to OK Financial Group, and Hyundai Capital selected Jang Eun-seok (20, Hanyang University) with the second pick. Coach Park Cheol-woo called out Jeon Yu-seok's name without hesitation. Immediately after the draft, Coach Park stated, "From the beginning, I had Jeon Yu-seok as my first choice. If Jeon Yu-seok had not been available by our turn, I would have considered Park Woo-young."
Jeon Yu-seok is an outside hitter standing 200 centimeters tall and weighing 91 kilograms. He started playing volleyball in the fourth grade of Myeongmok Elementary School and grew through Munil Middle School and Munil High School before reaching Chungbuk National University. Most notably, his unique background stands out. He was not a player who boasted great height from the start. Meeting with reporters after being drafted, Jeon Yu-seok reflected, "In middle school, I was short, so I trained as a libero. I was confident in my defensive sense and tried to go that direction."
He continued, "During high school first year, I couldn't exercise for about six months due to the coronavirus pandemic, and my height suddenly increased. I grew from 178 centimeters to 192 centimeters. As I got taller, I thought I could become a more unique player if I also learned attacking. So I changed my position to outside hitter, and I think it was a good choice."
The defensive skills he honed due to his short stature have ironically become a decisive weapon for entering the professional ranks. Coach Park evaluated, "From my perspective, I consider him the most prepared player. Because he played libero, he can receive well, and as his height suddenly increased, he has grown into an outside hitter with excellent receiving ability."
He added, "His attacking power can definitely improve if he supplements his physical strength and attacking techniques upon entering the professional league and meshes well with good setters," and expressed expectations, saying, "If a player possesses either outstanding attacking power or good receiving ability, along with height, I believe their potential is limitless."
Lee Kang-won (36), coach of Woori Card, shared the same view. Coach Lee said, "I also viewed Jeon Yu-seok most favorably. Considering his past experience as a libero, he is a player who can provide receiving like a libero while developing his attacking skills," and added, "His height is 2 meters. Under the head coach's guidance, I think he will become a really good attacker."
Indeed, the records he showed on the university stage back up the expectations. Jeon Yu-seok received the Attacking Award at the 2025 KUSF University Volleyball U-League. At this year's Korean Air Cup National University Volleyball Danyang Tournament, he recorded a 58% attack success rate, 47% attack efficiency, and 43% receiving efficiency. He ranked second in attack efficiency and third in receiving efficiency, and also won the Defense Award.
In the 2026 KUSF University Volleyball U-League regular season as well, he played 18 sets, recording 57 points, a 56% attack success rate, and 32% receiving efficiency. These figures demonstrate the potential of an outside hitter who does not lean toward either attacking or defense. Jeon Yu-seok was evaluated as having top-3 potential among outside hitters in this draft based solely on his university records, to the extent that other teams besides Woori Card also considered selecting him.
Jeon Yu-seok's role model is Heo Su-bong (28) of Hyundai Capital. For some reason, he has a similar appearance and was called "Heo Su-bong of Geumsan" in Geumsan, Chungcheongnam-do, where Chungbuk National University is located, for that reason. Jeon Yu-seok smiled and said, "When the nickname first stuck, it was also a burden, but I liked that people were paying attention to me. I thought I had to play even better so as not to cause any harm to player Heo Su-bong."
Nevertheless, he emphasized, "I think a defensive outside hitter with great height has a huge advantage. I want to develop blocking and attacking that utilize my height, and eventually play diagonally opposite Heo Su-bong on the national team. I want to attack together with him on the international stage."
Growing up in a family of volleyball players also contributed to his growth. His mother, Yoo Yeon-kyung (52), is a former outside hitter who played for KGC Ginseng Corporation (CheongKwanJang Red Sparks) and was also a member of the women's national volleyball team at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. His maternal grandmother, Hwang Gyu-ok (80), was an outside hitter who played for the national team at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.
His maternal uncle, Yoo Ho-seok (54), is also from a family of volleyball players, having played as an outside hitter for Korea Electric Power Corporation. His father, a former police officer, is also tall, standing 180 centimeters. The family, who well understood how arduous the path to becoming a successful athlete is, initially opposed their only son's challenge to become a volleyball player.
However, Jeon Yu-seok did not give up his dream of becoming a volleyball player despite his family's opposition, honed his skills at Chungbuk National University, and finally entered the professional stage. Jeon Yu-seok, who had originally only expected to be selected by Woori Card within the second round, said happily, "Since my home is in Seoul, I went to Jangchung Gymnasium often and wanted to come to Woori Card. I did not expect such a high pick."
He then stated, "I have come to the professional stage I dreamed of, but I believe I must prove myself from now on. I will definitely prove why they picked me in the first round," and revealed his ambitious goal, saying, "Now that I am at Jangchung, I want to have a different nickname. I will become my own Jeon Yu-seok and try to make it so that juniors can get my nickname attached to them."
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*This content was translated by AI.View Original
