Choi Minjeong leads Republic of Korea women's medal challenge

No country has won more Winter Olympic hardware in short track speed skating than Republic of Korea.

They topped the medal table on home ice at PyeongChang four years ago with three golds including Choi Minjeong's success in the 1500m.

Choi was also part of the triumphant 3000m women's relay team, and will likely lead the team at Beijing 2022.

While there are notable absentees, the Korean women will be formidable once more with PyeongChang relay gold medallists Lee Yubin and Kim A Lang joined by newcomers Seo Whimin and Park Jiyun.

But Korean Sport and Olympic Committee president Lee Kee-heung is keen to play down expectations, telling Korea JoongAng Daily, "Korea's goal is to win one to two gold medals at the Beijing Games.

"Of course, the more the better. We hope other events than short track like snowboarding and curling will achieve good results this year."

The Koreans are bidding for a hat-trick of golds in the women's 3000m relay.

Choi Minjeong

Choi was second in the Olympic trials in March and is regarded as one of the world's leading short track skaters.

The 23-year-old has two Olympic titles and 12 World Championship gold medals to her name.

She also holds the current world record of 2:14.354 in the women’s 1500m, which she set back in November 2016.

Having already been to a Winter Olympics, with the added pressure from it being a home Games, Choi appears to be taking Beijing in her stride.

She Korea JoongAng Daily, "Since this is my second time on the big stage, I now have much more experience. The Beijing ice rink is known to be difficult. Some skaters don't like it but I like it."

The Republis of Korea team

Like Choi, 26-year-old Kim A Lang also has two gold Olympic medals to her name.

She was part of the winning relay teams at the last two Games, and finished fourth in the individual 1500m at PyeongChang.

Kim has won six medals at the World Championships including three golds.

Lee Yubin was just 16 when she won relay gold at PyeongChang and showed her affinity for the Beijing rink by winning the 1500m in the World Cup opener held there in October.

Choi, Kim and Lee are eligible for all races and relays while Seo Whimin and Park Jiyun will only be able to compete in the relays.

Shim Sukhee and Kim Jiyoo miss out

The Korean team is without two skaters who would almost certainly have been in the hunt for medals in Beijing.

Shim Sukhee, who was in both winning Olympic relay teams with Kim A Long, won the Olympic trials in March but was banned by the Korean Skating Union for making disparaging comments about teammates and coaches in messages that were leaked after PyeongChang 2018.

Kim Jiyoo, who was third in those trials, has failed to recover sufficiently from breaking her right ankle during the third leg of the World Cup in Hungary in November.

How does short track speed skating work?

There are a total of nine events within short track speed skating at Beijing 2022, with one of those being a first in the Games.

For the men, there is the 500m, 1000m, 1500m and 5000m team relay.

The women will compete in the 500m, 1000m, 1500m and 3000m team relay.

In all of the above, the top two athletes or teams in each heat progress to the next round, culminating in the 'A Final', where skaters will compete for medals.

There is also the maiden mixed team relay, which took place on 5th February, with the Koreans failing to make the final.

When to watch the Republic of Korea short track women's team in competition at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022

If the women's 3000m relay is the race you're waiting for, then you can watch the semi-final on Wednesday 9 February at 20:45 (21:45 KST).

After that, the final is on Sunday 13 February at 19:44 (20:44) with the Koreans bidding for a hat-trick of gold medals.

The other finals which may feature the Korean women the 500m on Monday 7 February at 20:46 (21:46), the 1000m on Friday 11 February at 20:43 (21:43) and the 1500m on Wednesday 16 February at 21:18 (22:18).

MORE: How to watch short track speed skating at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022