Shim Suk-hee

In this Korean name, the family name is Shim.

Shim Suk-hee (Hangul: 심석희; Korean pronunciation: [ɕim.sʌ.kʰi]; born 30 January 1997) is a South Korean short track speed skater. She is a two-time Olympic Champion (2014, 2018) and a World Champion (2014).^[1][2][3] Shim is also the current world record holder for 1000m, having held the world record time since 2012.

Shim Suk-hee

Shim Suk-hee at the 2012 Youth Olympic Games
Personal information
Nationality	South Korean
Born	(1997-01-30) 30 January 1997 (age 25) Gangneung, South Korea
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	56 kg (123 lb)
Sport
Country	South Korea
Sport	Short track speed skating
Club	Seoul City Hall
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	500m: 42.440 (2022) 1000m: 1:26:661 (2012) 1500m: 2:17:513 (2012) 3000m: 4:50:829 (2014)
Medal record Women's short track speed skating Representing  South Korea Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 2 1 1 World Championships 9 4 4 Asian Winter Games 2 1 0 Youth Olympic Games 2 0 1 World Junior Championships 5 0 1 Total 20 6 7 Olympic Games 2014 Sochi 3000 m relay 2018 Pyeongchang 3000 m relay 2014 Sochi 1500 m 2014 Sochi 1000 m World Championships 2014 Montreal Overall 2014 Montreal 1000 m 2014 Montreal 1500 m 2014 Montreal 3000 m 2015 Moscow 3000 m relay 2016 Seoul 3000 m relay 2018 Montreal 1000 m 2018 Montreal 3000 m relay 2019 Sofia 3000 m relay 2013 Debrecen 1500 m 2015 Moscow 1500 m 2018 Montreal Overall 2018 Montreal 1500 m 2013 Debrecen Overall 2015 Moscow Overall 2017 Rotterdam Overall 2017 Rotterdam 1500 m World Junior Championships 2012 Melbourne 3000 m relay 2012 Melbourne Overall 2012 Melbourne 500 m 2012 Melbourne 1000 m 2012 Melbourne 1500 m 2012 Melbourne 1500 m SF Youth Olympic Games 2012 Innsbruck 500 m 2012 Innsbruck 1000 m Representing Mixed-NOCs Youth Olympic Games 2012 Innsbruck Mixed team relay

Shim Suk-hee
Hangul	심석희
Revised Romanization	Sim Seokhui
McCune–Reischauer	Sim Sŏkhŭi

Early life

At the age of 6, Shim started short track speed skating in her hometown Gangneung as a hobby with her older brother's influence.^[4] Her talent was obvious from her time since elementary school and led Shim's parents to fully support her short track career.^[5] Shim spent rest of her elementary school years in Seoul and joined the Junior National Team upon entering middle school.

Career

Junior career

Shim's first major international competition was the 2011 World Junior Championships. Her breakout moment was at the inaugural 2012 Winter Youth Olympics in Innsbruck, where she won gold in 500m and 1000m. She also won a bronze medal in the 3000m mixed-country/gender relay as a member of the mixed team made up of skaters representing different nations.^[6]

Shim continued her success at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Melbourne, where she finished first overall after winning gold in 500m, 1000m, and 1500m Superfinal.^[7] She also won gold in the relay with her teammates. In the 1000m semi-finals, Shim broke the world junior record previously set by Byun Chun-sa of South Korea in 2003,^[8][9] only to set a new world record in the 1000m finals.^[10]

Senior career

2012–2013 Season

At the young age of 15, Shim was selected as a member of the South Korean national team.^[11] She made her World Cup debut and won her first World Cup medal during the 2012–2013 season in Calgary. At the following World Cup competition in Salt Lake City, Shim set a new 1000m world record with a time of 1:26:661, which was almost a second faster than the previous world record (1:27.653) set by Valérie Maltais two days ago.^[12][13] Her world record still stands to this day. Shim continued her successful World Cup run for the rest of the 2012–2013 season and finished first in the overall World Cup standings.

Shim competed at the 2013 World Championships, where she won the 3000m Superfinal. She finished third overall behind Wang Meng and Park Seung-hi after winning 1500m silver.

2013–2014 Season

At the first race of the 2013–2014 World Cup in Shanghai, Shim won both the 1000 metres and 1500 metres. Shim won gold in the 1000 metres and silver in the 1500 metres at the second race in Seoul, South Korea. Her wins on home soil began to garner considerable media attention and put her into the national spotlight.^[14] At the third race of the 2013–2014 World Cup in Turin, Shim won both the 1000 metres and 1500 metres again. After winning gold in the 1500 metres and bronze in the 500 metres at the last race in Kolomna, Shim clinched her second straight overall World Cup title. She ended the competition with 102 overall points, followed by Park Seung-Hi and Valerie Maltais, with 73 and 39 points, respectively. She also became the 1000 meters and 1500 meters champion for the 2013–14 World Cup season. By this time, Shim has added a gold medal at twelve consecutive World Cups since 2012.^[15]

From 14–16 March 2014, Shim competed at the 2014 World Championships held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, winning her first overall title with 102 points, placing first place in the 1000 metres, 1500 metres and 3000 metres. She defeated South Korean Park Seung-hi, silver medalist and Canadian Valérie Maltais who finished third in points. Park Seung-hi won the 500m and placed second in 1000m. Maltais placed second on 3000m relay and third in 1000m.^[16]

 

Shim Suk-hee in the 1000 m at the 2014 Winter Olympics

Shim went into her first Winter Olympics in Sochi with the declared aim of winning multiple gold medals. On 13 February 2014, she first competed in the 500 metres but surprisingly failed to advance out of the quarterfinals placing fourth in her heat. Experts believed her lack of experience under such pressure has hindered Shim from performing at her best.^[17]

Two days later, Shim won silver in the 1500 metres. Shim started the 1500 m final race at the back of the pack. Then she first made a move with 10 laps to go, charging out to first place with Arianna Fontana right behind her. After Kim A-lang and Li Jianrou got tangled up midway through, Shim was comfortably in the lead. Shim stayed in first place until the final stretch, but Zhou Yang, the reigning Olympic 1500 m champion, zipped past Shim with two laps to go and did not relinquish the lead.^[18]

On 18 February, Shim claimed gold in the 3000 metre relay as part of the South Korean relay team. With three laps to go in the final race, South Korea trailed China by a substantial margin and seemed headed toward an inevitable second place. However, the 17-year-old anchor for the relay team reached deep and conjured up every bit of energy. She zipped past Li Jianrou on the outer side of the track in the final lap, a daring move that stunned the Chinese in a nail-biting finish.^[19]

On 21 February, Shim won the bronze medal in the 1000 metres with a total time of 1:31.027, which was 0.266 seconds behind winner Park Seung-hi and 0.216 seconds behind runner-up Fan Kexin.^[20]

From 14–16 March 2014, Shim competed at the 2014 World Championships held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, winning her first overall title with 102 points, placing first place in the 1000 metres, 1500 metres and 3000 metres.^[21] She defeated South Korean Park Seung-hi, silver medalist and Canadian Valérie Maltais who finished third in points.^[22]

2014–2018 Seasons

She participated in the 2015 World Championships and the 3,000-meter relay, the 1500 meter and the 3000 meter super final. She won the gold medal in the 3,000-meter relay with Choi Min Jeong, Lee Eun Byul and Oh Do Hee.^[23] She won silver medals in the 1,500-meter^[24] and 3,000-meter super finals. She only competed in the 3,000-meter relay of the World Championships in 2016^[25] and won the gold medal. She participated in the 3000m Super Final, 1500m, and won gold^[26] and bronze medals^[27] in 2017. She won the gold medal in the 3,000-meter relay,^[28] the 1,000-meter,^[29] and the silver medal in the 1,500-meter relay in 2018.^[30] In her 2018 ISU competition, she was ranked second overall, after Choi Min Jeong. Shim placed first in 1500m, followed by Prosvironova Sofia and Li Jinyu, from Russia and China respectively. The relay team had Choi Min Jeong, Kim Alang, Kim Yejin and Shim Suk Hee. Shim won gold in 3000m relay with her teammates at the 2018 Winter Olympics.^[31]

2020

After going through several injuries and stepping down from national team, Shim Suk-hee has joined Seoul City as a non-national team member and plans to participate in upcoming national team trials that is planned to take place in April.^[32]

South Korea Winter competition

Shim Suk-hee participated in 2020 South Korea's Winter Competition, where her last participation was eight years ago, in 2012. Shim has won both 1500m and 1000m in February.^[33]

Controversy

In January 2019, Shim revealed that she was sexually abused by former coach Cho Jae-beom, as a teenager.^[34][35][36] Group of athletes in South Korea raised allegations on sexual abuse in South Korea's female speed skating athletes. This further allegations are being part of the South Korea athlete's MeToo movement.^[37] In her complaint filed in December 2018, Shim accused Cho of multiple sexual assaults, including rapes, that first happened when she was a high school student. She further accused Cho that the sexual abuse continued until about two months before the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics that took in place in February 2018.^[38] The allegations came out to surface in early 2018, when Shim left the national team to avoid further assaults. In her hearings in Seoul, Korea, she argued that Cho's violence kept "escalating" as the time went by. Besides from sexual assault, Shim lays out that Cho kicked and punched her in the head as well. According to her lawyer, Shim was not able to tell the truth because she was worried and felt pressure from Cho regarding her career.^[37] In an interview, a female athlete from South Korea reveals that how it is like to go against and criticize the coach and what will the consequences will be. She explains that her career would face an end and she won't be accepted to universities.^[39] Cho, in his first trial in November 2019, denied all accusations on his sexual assaults. Cho, in a quick interview, told the public that he did not meet them at the place and time that they argue to be, and said that although he did meet them at a different time, those were for training purposes. Cho, currently is serving his sentence regarding constant violence on Shim.^[40] South Korea's sports chief apologized after the accusations and called the "systematic flaw" to prevent such misconduct.^[41]

In 2021, Shim was embroiled in race-fixing allegations after Shin's leaked text message with her coach implied that she tripped her teammate Choi Min-jeong on purpose.^[42] As a result, she was suspended from the national team for 2 months and barred from training. She filed an appeal to overturn the suspension in order to compete at the 2022 Winter Olympics to no avail as the South Korean court dismissed her request mid-January.^[43]

See also

• List of Olympic medalists in short track speed skating
• List of Youth Olympic Games gold medalists who won Olympic gold medals

References

1. "[소치동계올림픽] 쇼트트랙 여자 3000m 계주 '금메달'… 중국 실격". 천지일보 (in Korean). 18 February 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
2. "[소치동계올림픽] 女 1500m 심석희 은메달… 男 1000m 노메달". 천지일보 (in Korean). 15 February 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
3. "[소치] 심석희 '값진 동메달 땄어요~'". mk.co.kr. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
4. Kim, Jin-hee (25 February 2014). "[Sochi] Shim's father said "She's a reserved but lovely daughter"". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved 22 March 2014.
5. Grassie, Julia. "Who is Shim Suk-Hee?". NBC Olympics. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
6. "Athletes relish Short Track Mixed-NOC Team Relay". Youth Olympic Games – Innsbruck 2012. 21 January 2012. Archived from the original on 19 March 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
7. "Shim Suk-Hee, Korean short track queen". International Olympic Committee. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
8. "Records > Ladies > Juniors > 1000 m". International Skating Union. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
9. "2012 ISU World Junior Championships, AUS, Melbourne – Semi-finals". International Skating Union. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
10. "2012 ISU World Junior Championships, AUS, Melbourne – Final". International Skating Union. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
11. Moon, Chang-seok (18 February 2014). "[Sochi 2014] 'Final Weapon' Shim Suk-hee" (in Korean). News1 Korea. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
12. "Canada's Charles Hamelin wins short track silver in Calgary". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. 21 October 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
13. "Maltais, Valérie". Speed Skating Canada. 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
14. Kim, Young-rok (6 October 2013). "(Short Track World Cup) "Empress" Shim Suk-hee wins 1000 m gold" (in Korean). The Dong-a Ilbo. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
15. "S. Korean skaters dominate World Cup – The Korea Times". Retrieved 4 April 2020.
16. "Short Track Speed Skating – Results". shorttrack.sportresult.com. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
17. "여자쇼트트랙 17세 심석희 女王 질주만이 남아있다". 일요서울i (in Korean). 24 March 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
18. "Short tracker Shim Suk-hee wins silver in women's 1,500 meters". The Korea Times. 15 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
19. "(Olympics) Women's relay team puts together golden race in short track". Yonhap. 19 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
20. "Olympic Short Track Results". ESPN. Associated Press. 19 February 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
21. "An titré". L'Équipe (in French). 16 March 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
22. Kim, Tong-hyung (17 March 2014). "Her time has come". The Korea Times. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
23. "쇼트트랙세계선수권, 여자 계주 3000m 금메달!! – 국제뉴스" (in Korean). 16 March 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
24. [쇼트트랙] 심석희, 세계선수권 1500ｍ 銀. 뉴스1 (in Korean). 15 March 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
25. 여자 쇼트트랙 계주 세계선수권 우승...2연패 쾌거. womennews.co.kr (in Korean). 14 March 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
26. "'Go 평창' 서이라-심석희, 男女 올림픽 직행권 획득". sports.chosun.com. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
27. [세계쇼트트랙]서이라, 남자부 개인종합 우승…심석희 3위. newsis (in Korean). 13 March 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
28. "Short Track Speed Skating – Results". shorttrack.sportresult.com. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
29. "[쇼트트랙 세계선수권] 여자 1000m – 금메달 거머쥐는 심석희". sbssports.sbs.co.kr (in Korean). Retrieved 11 June 2018.
30. "2018 쇼트트랙 세계선수권 1500m 최민정 심석희 나란히 금·은메달 획득". 글로벌이코노믹 (in Korean). Retrieved 11 June 2018.
31. "[PyeongChang 2018] Short tracker Shim Suk-hee finally wins medal in PyeongChang". The Korea Herald. 20 February 2018. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
32. "[포토] '빙상 왕' 심석희, 서울시청 입단하는 날". hani.co.kr (in Korean). 3 January 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
33. "심석희, 동계체전 쇼트트랙 1000m 우승…2관왕". newsis (in Korean). 20 February 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
34. Hancocks, Paula (20 January 2019). "The female athletes speaking out about South Korean skating's culture of abuse". CNN. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
35. [Photo] At least 5 of 6 more sexual assault victims in S. Korean speed skating : National : News : The Hankyoreh
36. "South Korea sports chief apologises after Olympic speed skater alleges coach raped her". The Guardian. 15 January 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
37. "Sex abuse allegations rock South Korean Olympic skating". The Washington Times. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
38. "South Korean Olympic skater accuses abusive coach of sexual assault". South China Morning Post. 8 January 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
39. Hancocks, Paula. "The female athletes speaking out about South Korean skating's culture of abuse". CNN. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
40. 강영훈 (29 November 2019). "조재범, '심석희 성폭행 혐의' 첫 공판서 공소사실 전면 부인". 연합뉴스 (in Korean). Retrieved 4 April 2020.
41. "South Korea sports chief apologises after Olympic speed skater alleges coach raped her". The Guardian. 15 January 2019. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
42. Yonhap (5 January 2022). "Olympic short track champion downplays concerns about medal". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 28 January 2022.
43. Gawon Bae. "How double Olympic gold medalist Shim Suk-hee lost the race to overturn her ban ahead of Beijing 2022". CNN. Retrieved 28 January 2022.

External links

• Shim Suk-hee at ShortTrackOnLine.info 
• Shim Suk-hee at Olympics.com 
• Shim Suk-hee at Olympedia 
• Shim Suk-hee at the International Skating Union