‘Chulgak’ Kim Eui-yeon (29, Pocheon City Office) won his third title of the season in the men’s 400 meters at the 2023 Yecheon KTFL National Unemployment Athletics Games.
Kim exploded out of the gate in the men’s 400m final on the first day of competition at Yecheon Stadium in Gyeongbuk, South Korea, and finished in a personal best of 46.41 seconds (previously 46.92), beating out the hard-charging Choi Ki-man (Busan Bank-46.95) and Park Chan-yang (Hwaseong City Hall-47.45).
Kim’s victory marked her third consecutive podium finish, following her triumphs at the Iksan KTFL National Unemployed Athletics Competition (March) and KBS Boat Competition (May).
“It is encouraging that (Kim) has been steadily improving her time and has entered the 46-second range,” said Choi Sung-ho, head coach of Pocheon City. If she is selected for the Asian Games with this trend, I think she can break into the 45s,” said Choi. “We will work harder with her to achieve this.”
In the men’s and women’s sprint hurdles, Kim Kyung-tae and Ryu Na-hee (both of Ansan City Hall) took the top spots side by side. Kim won the men’s 110m hurdles final in a personal best time of 13.84 (previously 13.87), ahead of Kim Joo-ho (Commerce – 13.89) and Kim Byung-joon (Changwon City Hall – 14.12), and secured his 12th consecutive title after winning nine last season.
In the women’s 100m hurdles final, Ryu Na-hee clocked 13.78 seconds to win her first gold medal of the season, beating ‘opponent’ Cho Eun-joo (Yongin City Hall – 13.81 seconds), who had lost to her in both the Iksan and KBS Bae competitions.안전놀이터
In the women’s 100m final, ‘twin sisters’ Kim Da-eun and Kim So-eun (Gapyeong County Office) split the gold and silver medals with times of 11.86 and 12.11, respectively. Kim was also the last runner in the 400-meter relay with Jeon Ha-young, Kim So-eun, and Min Ji-hyun, helping Gapyeong County win the title in 46.29 seconds, ahead of Siheung City Hall (46.88 seconds).
Meanwhile, in the men’s 400-meter relay final, Anyang City Hall finished second in 39.93 seconds behind Sangmu (39.62 seconds). In addition, Lee Jung-tae (Anyang City Hall – 10.44 seconds), Nam Bo-hana (Paju City Hall – 4:32.42) and Lee Sodam (Ansan City Hall – 5.64 meters) finished third in the men’s 100 meters, and the women’s 1,500 meters.