 Seoul's Kim Ji-yoon and Jeong Byeong-jin (Photo: Eakin Howard/WCF) repeat as national champions, will represent South Korea at the 2024 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship. By: Cameron Sallaj The mixed doubles pair of Kim Ji-yoon and Jeong Byeong-jin teamed up for their first Korean mixed doubles championship last year. There, they won all four of their games to win the national title and went on to a sixteenth-place finish at the 2023 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship with a 3-7 record. The team entered the 2023 national championship in Uijeongbu as the number one ranked team and were looking to return to the world stage for a second year in a row. Kim and Jeong, representing "Seoul A," won their first game of the event before losing two straight matches to Gyeongbuk B and Bongmyeong A. With a 1-2 record, the team needed a near perfect finish to their round robin for a chance to reach the playoffs, and that's exactly what they did. Kim Ji-yoon and Jeong Byeong-jin won their last five games of the preliminary round to finish first among their pool with a 6-2 record and qualify directly for the best-of-three playoffs. In the semifinals, Kim and Jeong went up against Lee Eun-chae and Kim Min-woo (Seoul B), while in the other, Kim Hye-rin and Yoo Min-hyeon (Gangwon B) battled Kim Seon-yeong and Jeong Yeong-seok (Gangwon A). The semifinals and finals were played in a best-of-three series with the first team to two wins advancing. Kim Ji-yoon and Jeong Byeong-jin won the first two games to defeat Seoul B while Gangwon B bested Gangwon A two games to one. In the first leg of the final, Kim and Jeong had a strong performance, defeating Gangwon B 8-2 in six ends. Kim Hye-rin and Yoo Min-hyeon turned things around in the second leg, however, stealing their way to a 7-3 win over Seoul A. This forced a third game to decide the mixed doubles national team for the 2023-24 season. Through the first four ends of the final, the two pairs traded singles with the score sitting at two all after four. After scoring one in the fifth, Seoul A stole a single in the sixth end when Kim Hye-rin came up light on her final draw. Gangwon B scored two on their power play in the seventh end, tying the score at four with just one end left. In the eighth, Kim Ji-yoon needed a simple hit-and-stick to secure the pairs second mixed doubles national title, which she made. Kim and Jeong won the game 6-4 and with it defended their title as the Korean national mixed doubles team. Kim Ji-yoon and Jeong Byeong-jin avoided relegation at the 2023 World Mixed Doubles Championship with an 8-6 win over Austria in the relegation game. Because of this, the pair automatically qualified South Korea for the 2024 World Championship from April 20 to 27, with the location still to be determined. Watch the replay of the 2023 Korean Mixed Doubles Curling Championships final between Seoul A (Kim Ji-yoon / Jeong Byeong-jin) and Gangwon B (Kim Hye-rin / Yoo Min-hyeon): |
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Matt Dunstone (Photo: Curling Canada) and his Winnipeg-based squad begin play at the CO-OP Tour Challenge in Nisku, Alta.
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