South Korea Wins Women's 3000m Relay Gold, First in 8 Years

South Korea's women's short track team captured gold in the 3000m relay at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, reclaiming the title after eight years.

The Korean team of Choi Min-jung, Kim Gil-li (Seongnam City Hall), Noh Do-hee (Hwaseong City Hall), and Shim Suk-hee (Seoul City Hall) finished in 4 minutes 4.014 seconds at the Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 19 (Korea time). Korea battled fiercely with Italy and Canada until the final moments, but anchor Kim Gil-li delivered a stunning sprint to cross the finish line first. Italy took silver and Canada bronze.

This marks South Korea's second gold medal at the Games, following Choi Ga-on's victory in women's snowboard halfpipe. Korea has now collected seven medals total at these Olympics.

Korea last won the women's 3000m relay at the 2018 PyeongChang Games. Kim Gil-li, who earned bronze in the women's 1000m earlier, became the Korean delegation's first multiple medalist. Lee So-yeon (Sports Toto), who competed in the semifinal on Feb. 15, also earned gold.

Ace Choi Min-jung claimed her sixth career Olympic medal. With three golds and two silvers from previous Olympics, she now ties Jin Jong-oh (shooting), Kim Soo-nyung (archery), and Lee Seung-hoon (speed skating) for the most Olympic medals by a Korean athlete. She also tied Jeon Lee-kyung's record of four Winter Olympic golds by a Korean athlete.

Korea competed against Canada, the Netherlands, and Italy in the final. Leadoff skater Choi Min-jung took the early lead, but Korea fell to second with 25 laps remaining when Noh Do-hee was overtaken by Canada. Korea dropped to third with 20 laps to go when Kim Gil-li was passed by the Netherlands on the straightaway.

Crisis struck with 16 laps remaining when the Netherlands fell ahead of Korea. Choi Min-jung narrowly avoided the collision but lost significant ground to the leaders. She maintained her balance and accelerated to close the gap, followed by Kim Gil-li, Noh Do-hee, and Shim Suk-hee racing at full speed to catch the lead pack.

Running third behind Canada and Italy, Korea staged a dramatic comeback with five laps remaining. Shim Suk-hee pushed off Choi Min-jung with force, propelling Korea past Canada into second place. Anchor Kim Gil-li then overtook Italy on the straightaway with two laps to go, surging into first. Kim defended the inside lane to cross the finish line first, completing the golden run.