Description
Jo Ki-seong, who had ‘Rio Glory’ engraved on his phone case, said, “I’m confident this time too”
After winning three gold medals at the Rio Paralympic Games, he competed in freestyle and backstroke swimming at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games.
“A change in thinking at the words of Vice Minister Jang Mi-ran… I will focus on my own records rather than being conscious of my opponent.”
“I made a phone case of my best self.
I’m confident this time too."
Disabled swimming star Jo Ki-seong (disability level S4, Busan Sports Association for the Disabled) met with reporters at the Icheon Athletes' Village in Gyeonggi Province on the 13th and said this while dreaming of doing well at the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Para Games.
Jo Ki-seong won 1 in the 200m swimming at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympic Games. 안전놀이터
He converts the most splendid image of the moment he took a picture of the touchpad with his back into an illustration, custom-made it into a case that covers the back of the phone, and always carries it in his hand.
Jo Ki-seong will participate in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Para Games held in Hangzhou, China from the 22nd to the 28th of this month.
He will participate in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 50m backstroke swimming events at the competition.
He won three gold medals at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympics and three silver medals at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta and Palembang.
Jo Ki-seong, who fell into a slump at the 2021 Tokyo Paralympic Games due to not being able to train properly in the aftermath of the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), was desperate for this competition.
Jo Ki-seong wants to surpass his own record and add medals, but this competition is not easy either.
Breaststroke, which Cho Ki-seong recently changed to his main sport, was excluded from this competition due to a lack of participants.
Cho Ki-seong, who won a gold medal in the 50m breaststroke final at the Manchester World Para Swimming Championships last August, expressed regret, saying, “If there had been breaststroke at this competition, I would have definitely taken first place.”
However, he thought positively, saying, “I think it will be helpful in the Paris Paralympic Games next year since I will not be doing the breaststroke this time.
Since my record has not been made public, it is actually good in terms of game management and strategy.”
Cho Ki-seong cannot use his lower body due to a congenital brain lesion.
Because of this, I am concerned that my joints and muscles continue to harden.
Bae Hyeong-geun, coach of the national swimming team, said, "Emperor's disability continues to progress. Her
freestyle records have dropped significantly as her shoulders and each joint are bent a lot."
Cho Ki-seong said, "The legs tremble and the muscles harden quickly.
If you do not continue stretching, the legs will continue to curl, and eventually the stroke itself will change.
If the leg stiffness is severe, it will have effects such as exerting too much force and causing the body to sink." explained.
Jo Ki-seong declared, ‘I have no rivals,’ and pledged to fight against him.
In the past, this means that if you were conscious of a specific player and obsessed with the ranking, now you will focus on shortening your own record rather than thinking about beating his opponent.
What led to Jo Ki-seong's change of thinking was a comment from Jang Mi-ran, the second vice minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, on the tvN talk show 'You Quiz'.
Jo Ki-seong said, “Vice Minister Jang Mi-ran said, ‘There was a time when I hoped that the Chinese player would do poorly, and I was very embarrassed.’
He added, “The moment I heard that, I thought, ‘Why do I also want that player to do poorly?’ “It felt like I had been hit,” he said.
He continued, "In the past, I would get angry when a player like Takayuki Suzuki (Japan) appeared and I got pushed down, but now I just have to congratulate the opponent.
Regardless of whether I win or lose, if my record is good, I can acknowledge it and gain confidence that I am a capable player.
He said, “I will enjoy sports.”
Cho Ki-seong pledged to do his best by using the Hangzhou Asian Para Games as a prelude to next year's Paris Paralympic Games.
Jo Ki-seong said, “After consulting with a psychology teacher and understanding the coach’s coaching better, my record time has decreased significantly.
As I have gained confidence in my stroke technique, I am confident that I will do well in this competition as well,” raising expectations for a golden wave.
Jo Ki-seong, who is participating in the Asian Para Games for the third time in a row since the 2014 Incheon Games, said, "I plan to share my experiences with my juniors, such as taking a thicker coat, checking restaurant movements, and thinking that I am the main character in the stadium."
“I do it,” he said.
Jo Ki-seong said, “My junior Yeom Jun-du (disability grade S9, Gyeonggi Province Disabled Swimming Federation) works really hard, and it seems like his passion is something he learns from.
No matter how much experience he has, he can’t match the passion of his younger siblings who are competing for the first time.”
“It’s the same,” he said with a laugh.
The performances of Kim Min-woo (Gangwon Provincial Office) and Hwang Seon-woo (Gangwon Provincial Office), who won multiple gold medals in swimming at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, were also a stimulus.
Jo Gi-seong said, "We focused on swimming as we share the same stadium. The Korean athletes' performance made me feel good and motivated.
I was motivated and thought, 'I want to do well like that.'"