(C) FISU

CHUNCHEON – South Korean short-track star Kim Gil-li (Seongnam City Hall) delivered a dominant performance at the 107th National Winter Sports Festival, capturing the gold medal in the women’s 1,000-meter event with a new meet record.

On January 17, during the pre-event competition held at the Songam Sports Town Ice Rink in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, Kim crossed the finish line in the women’s general division 1,000-meter final with a time of 1:31.312. This performance shattered the previous meet record, further solidifying her status as a top-tier skater.

With this victory, Kim has secured three gold medals in the competition so far. Her previous wins came on the first day of the event in the mixed 2,000-meter relay and the women’s 3,000-meter relay.

Kim’s teammate and national team ace, Choi Min-jeong, also joined the triple-gold club. Choi, who won the mixed 2,000-meter relay and the women’s 500-meter sprint on the opening day, added her third gold medal alongside Kim in the women's 3,000-meter relay.

In the men’s competition, Lee Jeong-min (Seongnam City Hall) claimed the title in the 1,000-meter general division with a time of 1:27.437.

Notably, several key athletes preparing for the upcoming 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics—including Lim Jong-eon, Hwang Dae-heon, and Shin Dong-min—opted to skip this event to focus on their final Olympic preparations.

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