Sunday, November 14, 2010

Pregnant shooter credits baby for Asian Games gold

By JEAN H. LEE | AP
GUANGZHOU, China: South Korean shooter Gim Yun-mi says being seven months pregnant may have given her just the boost she needed to win two gold medals Sunday.
Gim, 28, came from behind to win gold in the individual 10-meter air pistol competition at the Asian Games, her second gold in Guangzhou.
“I’m just speechless,” a glowing Gim told reporters afterward, relishing her first international title. Her baby bump was barely noticeable beneath a black T-shirt and baggy tracksuit.
Gim credits the baby, due early next year, with keeping her focused after she experienced pre-competition jitters.
“I think my baby helped me stay calm and relaxed,” she said. “I am so happy that we won the gold together.” Gim, a newlywed, said she switched to the less noisy 10-meter air pistol event when she learned she was pregnant with her first child. She originally planned to skip the Asian Games and focus on the 2012 London Olympics.
But after she posted unexpectedly good results at the nationals recently, husband Jin Chul-gyu encouraged her to go to Guangzhou.
“I was worried that I’d be a burden to my team because of the baby,” Gim told reporters Sunday. “But they were all very understanding and generous.” The 28-year-old shooter from the southern South Korean city of Gyeongju said a phone call from her husband Saturday also helped calm her nerves, the Yonhap news agency reported.
Gim teamed up with Kim Byung-hee and Lee Ho-lim to win the team gold in the 10-meter air pistol competition earlier Sunday.
Then, Gim outlasted China’s Sun Qi for the individual title — her first international victory.
Gim said she would share the golds with her new baby. But first, she wants to get back home and celebrate.
“All I want now is to go back home to Gyeongju to see my husband,” she said. “And I just want to eat Korean food!”

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