Silver Medalist Park Hajun's Father: "Congratulatory Calls Keep Coming to Our Restaurant... Proud of My Son" [Paris Olympics]

Active Shooting Athlete Sister Also "Respectful of Younger Brother"
Geum Ji-hyun's Husband Supports While Caring for 14-Month-Old Daughter

Park Hajun (KT) and Geum Jihyun (Gyeonggi Provincial Office) became the first medalists of the South Korean team at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

On the 27th (local time), Park Hajun and Geum Jihyun engaged in a fierce battle against Cheng Lihao and Huang Weiting (China) in the gold medal match of the 10m air rifle mixed event held at the Ch?teauroux Shooting Center in France, but unfortunately lost with a set score of 12-16. The air rifle mixed gold medal match is a points-based competition where each shooter fires one shot per round, and the combined scores of the male and female athletes determine which team earns 2 points. The losing team earns no points, and in the event of a tie, each team receives 1 point. The first team to reach 16 points wins the match.

On the 27th (local time), Park Ha-jun is steadying his breath at the 10m Air Rifle Mixed Finals for shooting at the 2024 Paris Olympics held at the Ch?teauroux Shooting Center in France.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Korea earned 2 points in the first round but then lost the next three rounds consecutively to China. In the fifth round, Korea edged out China with a combined score of 20.8 to 20.7, but lost the sixth round and won the seventh, narrowing the gap to 6-8. After losing two rounds in a row again, Korea fell behind 6-12. They won the tenth round to reduce the deficit to 4 points but lost the eleventh round, trailing 10-14 and facing a crisis. However, Korea won two consecutive rounds afterward to catch up to 12-14. In the final 13th round, China shot an almost perfect 21.5 points, and despite Korea’s strong 21.1 points, they narrowly settled for the silver medal.

Park Hajun and Geum Jihyun were both born in 2000. Park Hajun is the youngest in a shooting family, while Geum Jihyun is a "mom shooter" with a daughter just over one year old.

Park Hajun, the youngest of three brothers and one sister, started shooting in the sixth grade of elementary school influenced by his third older sister, Park Hayanggi (Jeongseon County Office), who is also a shooter. Rapidly improving his skills, Park Hajun emerged as South Korea’s top male rifle shooter by winning two silver medals and one bronze at last year’s Hangzhou Asian Games. He also dominated the Olympic team selection trials held this year with overwhelming records and set a new Korean record at the Changwon Mayor’s Cup held ahead of the Olympics.

On the 27th (local time), Geum Ji-hyun (left) and Park Ha-jun, who won the silver medal in the 10m air rifle mixed team event at the 2024 Paris Olympics shooting competition held at the Ch?teauroux Shooting Center in France, are taking a commemorative photo on the podium. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
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Park Hajun’s parents, Park Jonggyun and Jo Youngja, who watched the match with heartfelt emotions, expressed pride in their son’s valuable silver medal. Through their team KT, they said, "We hoped Hajun wouldn’t be nervous, but I was more nervous watching him. Winning a silver medal at the Olympics, where the world’s best athletes gather, is a truly valuable achievement." They added, "The congratulatory calls at the restaurant haven’t stopped. Thanks to our youngest son, we are having this precious experience and are really proud. We want to cook delicious food for him when he returns." Especially, his sister Park Hayanggi, an active shooter, said, "I knew my brother was a good shooter, but I didn’t expect him to achieve such a meaningful silver medal on such a big stage. I respect him as a fellow athlete and want to tell him he worked hard and endured a lot."

Geum Jihyun became an Olympic medalist after intense efforts as an athlete even after giving birth to her daughter in May last year.

She found out she was pregnant before the International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup held in Cairo in October 2022, and despite her worries, secured a quota spot for the Paris Olympics. Geum Jihyun competed in the tournament while heavily pregnant until just before giving birth and earned her first individual Olympic qualification. In an interview with Yonhap News before the event, she said, "I feel sorry for not being able to play with my daughter now, but I endure it with the thought that I don’t want to be an embarrassing mom later."

After the match, Geum Jihyun expressed gratitude, saying, "I couldn’t talk after the gold medal match, but after the finals when we secured the silver medal, we had a video call. The whole family gathered and everyone was crying. That gave me strength." She also said that thanks to her husband taking care of their daughter in Ulsan, she was able to focus on the competition.

Park Hajun and Geum Jihyun will compete again on the 28th in the 10m air rifle men’s and women’s individual events, challenging once more for the gold medal.