The Korean women’s volleyball team had a disappointing performance in last year’s international competition. In response, Park Jung-ah (30, Pepper Savings Bank), the captain, is promising her good performance this year.
Recently, Park Jung-ah is having her busy schedule. In the last 2022-2023 season, after leading the Korea Expressway Corporation to win the championship match, she was released as a free agent (FA) and transferred to the youngest club, Pepper Savings Bank. Since the 24th of last month, he has been sweating ahead of the 2023 International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Volleyball Nations League (VNL) at the National Training Center in Jincheon, Chungcheongbuk-do.
In an interview with reporters prior to the women’s team’s public training held at the Jincheon Athletes’ Village on the 16th, Park Jung-ah said, “After she joined the national team, she first focused on improving her condition.” “She’s currently training with an emphasis on playing fast,” she said.
Park Jung-ah, who finished the season last, lacked her rest but maintained her sense of the game to some extent. Coach Yumi Han said, “She definitely looked good on the ball because she had some players who came in shortly after the season ended.” In response, Park Jung-ah said, “I personally thought that she was in poor condition after taking a break, but I am grateful that the coach said good things.”
Last year, the national team suffered extreme sluggishness, such as the 2022 VNL defeat and 1 win and 5 losses at the World Championships. However, this year, as many international competitions such as the VNL, Olympic qualifiers, and Asian Games are ahead, a rebound is desperately needed. In response, Park Jung-ah said, “There are many important competitions this year, so the day I first met with the players, I said let’s try again.”
The current national team is evaluated as having weakened compared to before the retirement of key players such as Kim Yeon-kyung (Heungkuk Life Insurance), Yang Hyo-jin (Hyundai E&C), and Kim Su-ji (IBK Industrial Bank). The lack of experience after the generation change was clearly revealed.
Park Jung-ah was also aware of this part. He pointed out, “There were many players who were new to international competitions, so there were many difficulties.”
스포츠토토 As captain, he has the burden of leading young players. However, with coach Han Yu-mi and Kim Yeon-kyung joining as an advisor, Park Jung-ah’s shoulders became lighter. Park Jung-ah smiled, saying, “Coach Han Yu-mi and advisor Kim Yeon-kyung came first and asked if there were any difficulties.”
Lastly, Park Jung-ah promised to show her further growth in this year’s international competition. He said, “Last year, I showed a bad figure at the international competition, but this year I will try to show a better figure.”