Park Sae-young, I Will Take Responsibility and Block

Women's Handball Goalkeeper Park Sae-young: "I Will Take Responsibility and Block at Least One More"

H-League save and defense rate 1st place… Asian Games gold medalist twice, Olympics debut.

Park Sae-young (Samcheok City Hall), the goalkeeper of the Korean women's handball national team who will be participating in the Paris Olympics that will open at the end of this month, expressed her determination to do her best with a sense of responsibility.

On the 8th, Park Sae-young pledged through the Korea Handball Association, "I feel a lot of pressure, but I will do my part in my position and show a game worthy of the name." 안전놀이터

Park Sae-young, who is leaving for the second European training camp this afternoon, said, "People say we are far from a medal spot, but I will not play a game where I am losing from the start," and "I believe that if I chase somehow, an opportunity will arise, and I will do my best until the end."

Park Sae-young is the best goalkeeper in Korea, recording the most saves with 309 in the 2023-2024 Handball H-League season and ranking first with an ERA of 39.9%.

Park Sae-young, a graduate of Uijeongbu Girls' High School and Korea National Sport University, is 175 cm tall and is a member of the gold medal team in the 2014 and 2018 Asian Games.

She has participated in the World Championships three times, but this is her first time at the Olympics.

Park Sae-young said, “I feel like I am weaker against European players,” looking back on the first European training camp in June, and “I got used to the speed and tempo a little bit by blocking a lot of European players’ balls during the training camp.”

It is true that the goalkeeper has been pointed out as a weak position for our country in international competitions.

We lost 27-31 to Slovenia, who we will meet in the group stage of this Olympics, at last year's World Championships, and at that time, our goalkeeper's defense rate was only 14% (5/35).

On the other hand, Slovenia blocked 32% (12/38), making the difference.

Of course, it is difficult to blame the goalkeeper's defense rate solely on the goalkeeper.

This is because if the defense blocks to some extent from the front, the defense rate can be higher.

However, based on the goalkeeper's 4 more saves in the World Championships against Slovenia last year, the defense rate would have been 26% (9/35), which means that a closer match could have been played against the opponent.

Park Sae-young expressed her determination ahead of the Olympics, where she will have to play against European teams, saying, “I have no choice but to constantly watch videos until I get used to it, and keep training until my body gets used to it,” and “I want to show everyone that I worked hard.”

She also played a faithful role in connecting the offense, recording 29 key passes and 24 assists in the Handball H-League last season.

If the goalkeeper’s saves are followed by smooth fast breaks, our women’s handball team can expect better results than expected at the Paris Olympics.

Park Sae-young, who started playing handball in the third grade of elementary school, said, “I felt that handball was an amazing sport when I watched the 2004 Athens Olympics when I was in the fourth grade,” and promised, “I will take responsibility and try to block at least one more goal.”