GANGNEUNG, SOUTHERLY KOREA - Forget Lindsey Vonn and Adam Rippon. The real rock actors on the Pyeongchang Olympics will be a very humble group connected with Korean curlers who also possess no idea they’ve become a worldwide sense.

Many people are known as this “Garlic Girls, ” the Southern region Korean women’s straightening crew with the fairy story story whoever name reflects the locally famed garlic cloves grown within their hometown. By no means considered a new medal challenger coming into Pyeongchang, they have risen to Zero. you in the search rankings, earning world-wide attention for their fierce expertise and even funny personalities.

And yet typically the Garlic oil Girls are actually pretty much totally sheltered from the international frenzy both by means of individual choice — that they transferred off their phones in the games to block outdoor consideration — and by simply a protecting coach who else is acutely aware that curling is as much the mental game as a good physical one.
South Korea's Betty Seonyeong, left, sweeps ice cubes with a teammate during their match up against Russian athletes within the 2018 Winter Olympics within Gangneung, South Korea, Feb. 21, 2018.
? Famous plus they may know it

After a good new match, the women of all ages were quickly shuffled recent waiting reporters, giving media apologetic laughs and greetings of “Anyonghaseyo! ” (hello) before vanishing. None connected with them, says coach The reality star Min-jung, are conscious that they’ve become celebrities.

“I’m sorry that My partner and i could hardly bring the athletes these days, mainly because I’m worried presently there will be a lot pressure and burden with them, ” Kim said. “Even typically the crowd is too thinking about them. ”

That fascination is understandable. The Garlic herb Girls seem tailor-made intended for stardom.

The hugely experienced underdogs came into this Olympics ranked eighth found in the world in addition to went on to crush styling heavyweights including Canada plus Sweden. They are pretty in addition to comical, mentioning to on their own by quirky nicknames like “Pancake” and “Steak. ”

Two teammates will be siblings and all may be longtime friends, creating remarkable chemistry on the ice. This team’s “skip, ” or even captain, includes a steely gaze and way-out, owl-eyed drinking glasses that have turn out to be hitch for endless Net memes.

Screaming fans

Many Koreans who have never seen a curling match possess traveled to remote Gangneung to help peek at their very own nation’s new darlings inside person.

“I’m very very pleased of them, ” mentioned Lee Ji Sun, some sort of 26-year-old who had in no way been inside a straightening arena before Wednesday’s complement. “They are showing we all can excel even at new sport situations. ”

Every match offering the team is packed having shouting, flag-fluttering Koreans who step to their ft to brighten on often the women’s stunningly specific shots. One fan inside the group Wednesday waved what exactly appeared to be a hand-drawn family portrait of skip Ellie Eun-jung with her brand spectacles.
Southwest Korea's can certainly curling staff celebrate after beating Ukrainian athletes through their match on the 2018 Winter Olympics in Gangneung, South Korea, Feb. 21 years of age, 2018.
? Late on the game of curling

That will being different has gained virtually any dominance in Korea is usually surprising in itself. Korea did not even have a group throughout Olympic curling until finally the 2014 Sochi Game titles.

It took Koreans a short time to wake up to help curling, largely because often the region lacked sufficient amenities right up until recent years, Betty Young, a good curling fable who started the particular Korean Curling Club 23 years ago, said by email. Now, he or she says, Korea has 6 dedicated curling domains, and lots of schools have curling clubs.

In 2006, South Korea’s earliest curling center seemed to be inbuilt the rural town of Uiseong. Four involving the five team members attended Uiseong Women’s School, exactly where they were on the particular school’s curling team. Uiseong’s standing as the nation’s default curling capital slowly grew, plus the curling center has organised about eighteen major domestic and foreign curling functions.

Garlic and even those nicknames

Nonetheless, right up until the women’s team began their surprise winning talent in Pyeongchang, Uiseong seemed to be better known for their respected garlic oil production.

Koreans think of garlic clove a health meals that boosts stamina levels. Search engine marketing Eun Ha, a 26-year-old Garlic herb Girls fan, states garlic herb may experience contributed to the team’s success. (She as well credits the women’s great team-work and strong romantic relationships. )

Like quite a few lovers in Gangneung, Seo is very loving of the curlers’ abnormal nicknames: Sunny, Steak, Pancake, Annie (a brand involving yogurt) and ChoCho (a style of cookie).

“I believe their very own nicknames go well with their vibrant images, ” Seo stated. “I like ‘Steak’ the best. It sounds so funny together with unique. ”

The nicknames started as a gag over breakfast one day, mentioned Kim, the discipline. The ladies were talking with regards to how challenging it was basically for additional countries’ runners to enunciate their very own names at international contests. All of five team members and their coach also share exactly the same surname — Kim, that is very common in Korea — making their titles much more confounding for foreigners.

.k Seon-yeong, who had been eating the sunny-side-up melted egg, joked that the girl could go by the name “Sunny. ” Another women loved the idea. Both opted to nickname by themselves after the English terms for his or her favorite breakfast foods, foreseeing that would end up being easier for others to grasp.

Nevertheless the women’s staff is getting the the majority of focus, Korean language fans have been intending wild intended for the men, also. Right after Wednesday’s men’s fit, a good gamer from the Korean team began throwing T-shirts into the crowd, which in turn surged forward with outstretched biceps and triceps.

Kim Heae Darm, a new fan who leaped upwards and managed to be able to snag some sort of shirt going overhead, shoved it to her face in addition to cried with glee. The lady in that case turned to capturing the particular consideration of Korean blended doubles player Lee Ki-jeong, who also scrawled his autograph in her notebook.

Since she struggled to find her breath, she discussed her excitement by noticing that Lee was robust, specific sport and “very attractive. ”

As for often the achievement from the women’s group, Kim, typically the founder of the curling golf club, couldn’t be prouder. “ 컬링 are usually heroes! ” he mentioned.


Yet the Garlic Ladies do have one ask: It could be someone could are available up with a better ones team name for these people?

“We would prefer often the name ‘Team Kim, ’” Kim, the trainer, stated with a laugh. “Because although our hometown can be Uiseong — which is definitely related to garlic — many of us have no marriage together with garlic in anyway. ”