Korean rhythmic gymnastics star Son Yeon-jae has finally arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Monday after her training in Sao Paolo to compete at the Rhythmic Gymnastics competition in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
The 22-year-old gymnast will compete in three rhythmic apparatus events (ball, hoop, clubs and ribbon). Each of her gymnastics routines will take approximately 90 seconds to finish, but that six minutes of her life would be the climax of her 17-year gymnastics career.
Son was only ranked 32nd after she made her debut in the senior circuit during the 2010 World Championships. However, she did not let it discourage her and instead used it as an inspiration to improve herself further. She challenged herself by participating in Russia’s Novogorsk Training Center, a facility filled with the world’s top performing rhythmic gymnasts.
The competition was fierce in the facility where the athletes had to line up in order of performance records even for ballet warm-up. Son, who has been at the end of the line at the beginning of her training, has endured great challenge (over 10 hours per day) for six years. With her extreme dedication and hard work, she eventually moved up to the front.
When asked whether she still wants to engage in the sport of rhythmic gymnastics if she was to be reborn, the 22-year-old nodded without hesitation.
The South Korean athlete, without a doubt, has greatly improved over the recent years. In the previous World Cup cycle, the 22-year-old gymnast consistently broke her own personal record in every competition, and even won at least one medal in each of them.
As she arrived in Rio de Janeiro, she carried with her the dream of becoming the first Korean gymnast to win an Olympic gold medal. Should she achieve her ultimate dream in this competition, it would be marked as a historic achievement in Korea’s sports history.
The rhythmic gymnastics individual all-around qualifications in Rio will begin on August 19 at the Rio Olympic Arena. The competition will continue on Saturday (August 20) with the individual All-around finals and on Sunday (August 21), with the team All-around finals.
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