Is it forced to be helpless or for his own selfish interests, why did South Korean short track leader Lin Hyojun become a naturalized Chinese? The athlete who will smile brightly when his name is introduced is none other than Lin Xiaojun.
The scene took place at the Beijing Winter Olympics in China's short track speed skating competition, where the South Korean short track speed skater recently became a Chinese citizen and is beloved by Chinese fans.
As we all know, Koreans are proud of South Korea, but Lin Hyojun chose China, what is going on? Is it forced to be helpless? Or is it just personal gain?
Lim Hyo-jun, who was synonymous with "short track speed skating" in South Korea, won the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. This is something that the Korean people and the entire Korean people are proud of.
However, his life was not so smooth, and he was once accused of harassing his teammates for his joking behavior, for which he was condemned by the law and the public. Due to injuries and suspensions, he was excluded from the sport and ignored by his teammates.
He was once dissatisfied with the chaos and darkness of short track speed skating in South Korea, and thus lost his confidence and enthusiasm, both for himself and for his rivals. In the end, he did something that was surprising: he gave up his Korean nationality and became a Chinese citizen. This change has set off huge waves in both countries.
How did Lin Xiaojun change from a "national treasure" in South Korea to a "naturalized" in China? What were his motivations and considerations for doing so? What kind of attitude will he have to deal with his past?
Brilliance and twists
Lim has shown great talent in short track speed skating since he was a child, winning the men's 1500m at the 2012 Youth Olympic Games and the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, breaking the Olympic record.
At the same time, he also won 5 gold medals at the 2019 World Championships and is a "national treasure" of South Korea. However, behind all this, there are also many twists and turns.
He's had a lot of injuries that have prevented him from playing in major tournaments. He has been prosecuted for a joke move, fined and suspended, and he has been unhappy with South Korea's foul standards and poor management.
Lim Hyo-jun participated in a match for South Korea on March 10, 2019, and then he fell into silence for more than two years. In the process, he was ostracized, slandered, ostracized by the Korean people, and not understood by the general public.
He also failed to find a coach on the training pitch who would allow him to get back into shape. It was in this context that he began to think about his future.
In October 2021, he officially announced his naturalization as a Chinese citizen and appeared in a Chinese jersey. It is reported that he has been coached by Ahn Hyun-so, he has returned to China, and he has taken a fancy to the strength and atmosphere of the Chinese team.
When he got the results, he originally thought that he could bring more honors to Korean sports, but he didn't expect to usher in a turning point. even almost buried Lin Xiaojun's career!
In 2019, during a rock climbing training session with Lin Xiaojun and his teammates, his team member Huang Daxian joked with the girls present, Lin Xiaojun couldn't stand it, and when he was climbing, he made a small move to Huang Daxian in front of him and pulled his pants.
Moreover, because several girls were present, Huang Daxian felt that his face was lost. Although Lin Xiaojun apologized immediately, Huang Daxian still felt that he had been traumatized and could not forget. and prosecuted Lin Xiaojun.
In South Korea's short track speed skating team, Lim Hyo-jun was also kicked out of the competition venue. After that, Lin Xiaojun also held a press conference to apologize to everyone, and even his own team members helped Lin Xiaojun speak, but even so, Huang Daxian still refused to let Lin Xiaojun go.
even got into trouble with the Korean Ice League and punished Lin Hyojun with a one-year suspension. Later, he waited until the results of the indictment came out and found Lin Xiaojun guilty.
There is a rule in the South Korean national team that players who have been sentenced to prison cannot join the Korean national team, which means that Lim Hyo-jun's career is over, and this is indeed the case. Since the second half of 2019, Lin Xiaojun has been banned, which is undoubtedly a shame for an athlete with high expectations.
Lim Hyo-jun applied to the court to appeal, but an athlete is only at his peak for a few years, and he can participate in it not many times. As the days passed, Lin Xiaojun felt that he should not respond passively, and Lin Xiaojun also came to China for training to maintain his competitive form.
The second-instance verdict has come out, now that Lin Xiaojun has been acquitted, why did Lin Xiaojun suddenly go from guilty to innocent? It turned out that it was the female athlete who was present at the time who testified in court and explained to everyone that the matter was not very serious, but only because Huang Daxian made a joke with the girl, and Lin Xiaojun did it because he couldn't bear it.
This time, the situation has changed drastically, and the South Korean coach has begun to take the initiative to contact Lin Hyo-jun, wanting him to return to the national team and start training again. However, he has become a Chinese citizen and has become a member of the Chinese short track speed skating team.
Distort the high-pressure workplace atmosphere
When Lin Xiaojun realized that his career was coming to an end, he began to think of a way to go to China, so after struggling for a long time, he still chose Chinese nationality and played for China.
When Lin Xiaojun was on trial in China, he did not think about fame and fortune, nor did he think about hatred between countries. He wants to go further in what he likes, but South Korean netizens don't understand him.
The editor thinks that Lin Xiaojun took off his team's pants, which is his fault, but this does not mean that he will be sentenced to death. Therefore, not allowing him to represent his country in the Winter Olympics is really too much.
If South Korea's legal system is very strict, then forget it, but South Korea has always turned a blind eye to those rich, criminals, and murderers, but why did Lin Xiaojun not directly select him for the national team again?
What's even more interesting is that when Lin Xiaojun decided to join the Chinese athletes, South Korea immediately began to declare Lin Xiaojun innocent, which sounds like retention, but in fact, it is so that Lin Xiaojun has no excuse to change his nationality and become a traitor.
South Korea's move was very successful, and it directly aimed at Lin Xiaojun. When South Korean netizens knew that Lin Hyo-jun was going to represent China in the Beijing Winter Olympics, the psychological defense of South Korean netizens collapsed, they cared about medals, they looked proud on the surface, but in fact they were inferior in their hearts.
Asking an athlete who won the championship to help China is simply a slap in the face, so they have all kinds of insults against Lin Xiaojun, insulted his family, and even threatened his family and made all kinds of mockery against him.
China is welcomed, and the future is promising
After learning that Lin Xiaojun was selected for the Chinese short track speed skating team, Chinese short track speed skating enthusiasts were very excited and believed that with the help of such a world-class athlete, China will make great strides in the sport.
Some people who are familiar with the style of Korean sports have complained: "Since he is not accepted by the Korean sports world, it shows that Lin Xiaojun has a decent style and is an excellent athlete, and he is very suitable for the development of the Chinese team."
Unfortunately, he will not be able to compete at the Beijing Winter Olympics because of current international rules, and he will not be able to represent two different countries at the same time for three years.
Because the last time he represented South Korea in an international competition was in March 2019, and he will not be able to represent the Chinese national team in the world competition until March 2022. I happened to miss the Winter Olympics in February 2022. This is not only a big regret for the Chinese national team, but also a big loss for Lin Xiaojun himself, he is 25 years old and can't wait any longer.
But the editor believes that Lin Xiaojun stood out from the Korean sports circle and joined the thriving Chinese track and field team. In that case, his career will usher in a period of rapid development.
He is currently working as a technical coach for the Chinese short track speed skating team, and he will also be able to take the opportunity to deepen his understanding and understanding with the Chinese team members, and by March next year, he will be able to play alongside the national team.
I believe that after this period of precipitation, Lin Xiaojun will definitely achieve greater results in the international arena together with the Chinese national team!