Kim Song-i (Korean pronunciation: [kim.soŋ.i]; born 10 August 1994) is a North Korean table tennis player. As of November 2017, she is ranked 23rd in the world based on ITTF rankings.[2]

Kim Song-i
Personal information
NationalityNorth Korea
Born (1994-08-10) 10 August 1994 (age 30)
Phyongchon District, Pyongyang
Height1.61 m (5 ft 3 in)
Weight55 kg (121 lb)
Table tennis career
Playing styleRight-handed, Classic[1]
ClubAmrokkang Sports Club
Medal record
Representing  North Korea
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Singles
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Kuala Lumpur Team
Representing  Korea
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Halmstad Team
Kim Song-i
Chosŏn'gŭl
김송이
Hancha
金松怡
Revised RomanizationKim Sung-I
McCune–ReischauerKim Song-I

Kim plays a highly defensive style with plenty of slice, occasionally injecting pace with top spin strokes from the forehand.[3] She represents the Amrokkang Sports Club.[4]

She won the bronze medal for North Korea at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Early life

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Kim was born on 10 August 1994 to a working-class family in Phyongchon District, Pyongyang.[5][4] She went to the Ponghak Primary School and later the Sosong District Juvenile Sports School.[4]

Career

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In 2012 in Helsingborg she won the Women's Singles title at the Swedish Open.[6]

2016 Rio Olympics

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In the third round, she surprisingly beat Japan's Kasumi Ishikawa, ranked number six in the world.,[7] In the quarter-finals, she went on to beat Singaporean Yu Mengyu, ranked 13th, with a score of 4-2 before losing to second-ranked Ding Ning in the semifinals with a score of 4–1. However, Kim was not an easy opponent for Ding, who was both stressed and exhausted after the match.[8] In the bronze medal match, she beat Japan's Ai Fukuhara with a score of 4–1 to take the bronze medal of the 2016 Olympics.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Bio - KIM Song I, NBC Olympics
  2. ^ "World Ranking". ITTF. Archived from the original on 2016-10-09. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  3. ^ Marshall, Ian (11 August 2016). "Birthday present for Kim Song I, the bronze medal". ITTF. Archived from the original on 13 August 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-11.
  4. ^ a b c "Secret of Success". Naenara. Foreign Languages Publishing House. 19 July 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  5. ^ a b "KIM Song I". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-08-06.
  6. ^ Marshall, Ian (June 10, 2012). "Hampus Nordberg and Kim Song I Awarded Highest Swedish Qualifications". ITTF. Archived from the original on August 25, 2016.
  7. ^ "Olympic Ranking - July 2016". ITTF.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ Marshall, Ian (10 August 2016). ""Ding Ning reaches final, Kim Song I provides stern test"". ITTF.