Tesero: Kim Yun-ji made history by becoming the first South Korean woman to secure a gold medal at the Winter Paralympics on Sunday. Competing in the women's individual sitting category in para biathlon at the 2026 Winter Olympics, held at the Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium in northern Italy, Kim achieved this milestone with a remarkable performance.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim completed the competition in 38:00.01, finishing 12.8 seconds ahead of Germany's Anja Wicker, who claimed the silver. Kendall Gretsch from the United States secured the bronze with a time of 38:47.9. This victory not only marks South Korea's first Winter Paralympics gold medal since 2018 but also the country's first at an away Winter Paralympics.
The para biathlon event is a challenging combination of cross-country skiing and shooting over a distance of 12.5 kilometers. Each athlete participated in four shooting sessions, taking five shots in each. Any missed shots resulted in an additional minute added to their total time. Kim's performance was notable as she successfully hit all five targets in her first shooting session. Despite missing twice in the subsequent session, which temporarily placed her in fifth, she recovered by hitting her next 10 shots in the final two sessions, securing her historic win.
Source: Yonhap News Agency