Women's Boxer Im Ae-ji Paris is a Festival

Women's Boxer Im Ae-ji: "Paris is a Festival that may Come to my Life at Any Time"

First Korean female boxer to become Olympian… Second consecutive Olympic appearance after Tokyo.

“I want to become the first female boxing medalist from my country”

Lim Ae-ji (25, Hwasun County Office) is one of the athletes representing Korean women's boxing.

She defeated Zeinab Rahimova (Azerbaijan) in the women's 54kg class at the 2024 Paris Olympic Boxing 2nd World Qualifying Tournament held in Bangkok, Thailand last month, and became the second Korean boxer to qualify for the Paris Olympics after Oh Yeon-ji (Ulsan City Sports Council), and is on the verge of qualifying for the Olympics for the second consecutive time. 파워볼사이트 추천

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which was her first Olympic appearance, she failed to show her skills and lost to Nicholson Skye (Australia) in the first round, but she is looking forward to the podium in Paris.

In an interview with Yonhap News Agency at Chungbuk Physical Education High School on the 8th, Im Ae-ji said, "Honestly, I am looking forward to a medal.

I think a lot about becoming the first female boxing medalist in our country.

"I am confident that I can win a gold medal if I just demonstrate my skills," she said, revealing her goal.

Korean women's boxing made its Olympic debut at the Tokyo Olympics.

At that time, Im Ae-ji and Oh Yeon-ji also went out, but Im Ae-ji's match came first due to scheduling issues, so Im Ae-ji won the title of 'First Korean Female Boxing Olympian'.

Im Ae-ji's strength is her footwork (steps).

In boxing, steps are the most important weapon and starting point to gain an advantageous position.

That's why there is a saying that 'boxing is a game played with feet, not fists.'

Kim Ho-sang, the head coach of the Korean boxing team, recalled, "Im Ae-ji has really good steps.

That's why I told her, 'If you just show your steps, you'll be a world champion. '

At the World Preliminary Competition in Thailand where she qualified for the Olympics, her shoulder wasn't good, so I told her, 'If you just show your steps, no one can hit you,' and she really did."

He added, "If the early matchups go well, there will be no problem after that.

We can cautiously expect a medal."

Im Ae-ji also said, "I think my steps and backhand (big punches) are my main weapons.

I think I can win if I maintain my own pace, no matter who I face, so I try to focus on myself."

Southpaw boxer Lim Ae-ji is actually not in perfect condition.

Her left shoulder and left leg are in bad condition.

Lim Ae-ji said, “That’s why the preparation process was a bit difficult, but I kept thinking about what the best I could do in this situation is.”

Instead of holding on to my worries, my goal in Paris is to empty my mind and enjoy the competition.

Lim Ae-ji, who only went back and forth between the stadium and her accommodations due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) at the Tokyo Olympics, said, “I feel at ease because I’ve been to the Olympics once.

In Tokyo, I thought, ‘This is a once-in-a-lifetime event,’ but now I look forward to it as ‘a festival that may come in my life at any time. ’”

The best-case scenario is to confidently win a medal and enjoy the Olympics with her reliable older sister Oh Yeon-ji, who is competing in the Olympics with her.

Lim Ae-ji said, “I don’t talk about ‘let’s win a medal together with Yeon-ji.’

Instead, I’m going to go and enjoy it.

In Paris, I want to win a medal and cheer on our athletes.”

Oh Yeon-ji, who is 9 years older than Im Ae-ji, is someone you can always rely on.

Oh Yeon-ji, a pillar of Korean boxing, secured her Olympic ticket a day before Lim Ae-ji at the World Preliminaries in Thailand last month.

Lim Ae-ji said, “She congratulated me so much, but I don’t think my sister was very happy.

Later on, I thought it was because I hadn’t secured my spot yet,” and “When I got my quota the next day, my sister hugged me and seemed happy about it as if it were her own.”

If Lim Ae-ji wins a medal in Paris, there is another person she would like to give a medal to.

That is coach Han Soon-chul (39), the last Korean boxer to win an Olympic medal.

Coach Han, who won a silver medal in men’s boxing at the 2012 London Olympics, worked hard with the women’s national team as their coach and will be accompanying them to the Paris Olympics.

Lim Ae-ji said, “Coaches Han Soon-chul and Han Hyung-min have been very supportive of women’s boxing.

I want to win a medal in Paris and show it off to my coaches.”

Lim Ae-ji said, "A coach once said, 'You shouldn't fail like the teacher.'

Then we waved our hands and said, 'Even a silver medal is nice.'

I could really feel the teacher's heart that wanted to give us a gold medal."