"Honey, this time it’s gold" Korean speed skating’s "monster" has awakened... Chung Jae-won sets his sights firmly on Olympic gold

[Financial News] No one remembers him as someone else’s pacemaker anymore.
The teenage boy with the baby face who used to push along his older teammates has now grown into a "giant" shouldering the fate of Korean speed skating. With the great war of the Olympics looming, he has boldly turned the ice at Taereung into his own personal stage.
This is the story of national speed skating team member Chung Jae-won (24, Gangwon City Hall). With the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo just ahead, he put on a dominant performance in what amounts to his "final rehearsal," brightening the outlook for a gold-medal finish.
On the 14th, at the Taereung International Skating Rink in Seoul, Chung Jae-won crossed the finish line in 1:47.54 in the men’s senior 1500m at the 107th National Winter Sports Festival. It was more than just a win. He shattered the previous mark with a new tournament record. Having already claimed titles in the mass start and 5000m, he completed a remarkable treble at the event.
The significance of this triple crown is special. As a long-distance specialist, his explosive speed in the middle-distance 1500m carries major implications. In recent Olympic mass start races, endurance alone is no longer enough. Power and speed are essential to survive the final sprint battle. With this new tournament record, Chung Jae-won proved that his physical condition has already surpassed 80–90% and is racing toward its peak.
Chung Jae-won’s Olympic résumé is both dazzling and bittersweet. As a high schooler, he won silver in team pursuit at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, and then another silver in the mass start at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. He has proven himself among the world’s elite, yet the thirst for the very top step of the podium still burns in his heart.


For these Milan Olympics, he has chosen "selection and concentration." He is going all-in on his main event, the mass start. To that end, he has even decided to skip the fifth leg of the ISU Speed Skating World Cup on the 23rd. It is the gambler’s mindset of staking everything on his condition on Olympic day rather than chasing ranking points right in front of him.
World-class powerhouses such as Jorrit Bergsma (Netherlands), Bart Swings (Belgium), and Jordan Stolz (United States) are lined up. But Chung Jae-won is not intimidated. "I’ve grown since the World Cup as well. I’m not behind them," he says, his words carrying a confidence backed by substance.
There is another reason these Olympics are even more special for Chung Jae-won: it will be his first Games as the head of a household. Having tied the knot in 2024, he is no longer alone. "To repay my wife for all her support, I really want to win gold this time and hang it around her neck," he declared, a romantic yet solemn statement of intent.


At 24, he has reached the absolute prime of his physical powers as a speed skater. His experience has ripened, his stamina is complete, and his mentality has hardened.
The die is now cast. Chung Jae-won is ready to heat up the cold ice in Milan, Italy more than anyone else.
Having warmed up with two silvers, the "speed skating prodigy" is now poised to ascend as the "speed skating king." The people of Korea are waiting to hear Chung Jae-won’s roar echo through Milan this February.


jsi@fnnews.com Jeon Sang-il Reporter