"Kim Gilli's Late Surge" Delivers First Short-Track Gold
Minjeong Choi and Kim Gilli's furious late charge...From third to first with four laps to go
The long-awaited first gold medal in short-track speed skating has arrived.
Kim Gilli, the final skater of the South Korean women's short-track team, is cheering after crossing the finish line first in the women's 3000m relay at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics with a time of 4 minutes 4.014 seconds at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, on the 19th (KST). Photo by Yonhap News Agency
South Korea's women's short-track national team won the gold medal in the women's 3,000m relay at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics with a time of 4 minutes 4.014 seconds at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, on the 19th (Korean time). Host nation Italy (4 minutes 4.107 seconds) took silver, and Canada (4 minutes 4.314 seconds) claimed bronze.
Ranked second this season in the International Skating Union (ISU) women's 3,000m relay standings, South Korea faced Canada, the Netherlands, and Italy in the final. Team captain Choi Minjeong skated first, followed by Kim Gilli, Noh Dohee, and Shim Sukhee in that order for the final race.
South Korea, having posted the best time in the semifinals, was assigned the inside Lane 1. Reacting quickly to the start signal, Choi Minjeong immediately seized the lead.
On the 18th (local time), at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Italy, Korean athletes who won the gold medal in the short-track speed skating women's 3000m relay final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics are celebrating. Yonhap News
South Korea surrendered the lead to Canada during the exchange from the second skater, Kim Gilli, to the third skater, Noh Dohee. With 19 laps remaining, the Netherlands also overtook them, dropping South Korea to third place.
With 16 laps to go, the flow of the final shifted dramatically when a Dutch skater, battling Canada for the lead, fell. As Choi Minjeong maneuvered to avoid the fallen Dutch skater, her speed dropped and South Korea slipped to third, while Canada and Italy surged into first and second.
With 10 laps remaining, South Korea closed the gap on the leading Canada and Italy. With three and a half laps to go, at the moment of the exchange from Shim Sukhee to Choi Minjeong, South Korea moved up to second place. Then, with one and a half laps left, anchor Kim Gilli overtook Italy's Arianna Fontana to take the lead. Kim powered through the final lap, crossed the finish line first, and let out a roar with both arms thrust high into the air.
On the 18th (local time) at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, South Korean athletes who won the gold medal in the women's 3000m short track relay at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics are smiling brightly on the podium before posing for a commemorative photo while holding their medals. Yonhap News
South Korea reclaimed the women's 3,000m relay gold medal for the first time in eight years, since the 2018 Pyeongchang Games. It is the country's seventh gold medal overall in the women's 3,000m short-track relay.
South Korea captured four consecutive Olympic titles in the women's 3,000m relay from the 1994 Lillehammer Games through the 2006 Turin Games, and although it was first to cross the finish line at the 2010 Vancouver Games, it was disqualified. South Korea then achieved back-to-back titles at the 2014 Sochi and 2018 Pyeongchang Games, before winning silver at the 2022 Beijing Games.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
