▲ South Korean player Park Eun-jin attempts a block during the women's volleyball Group D second match between South Korea and Qatar at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at the Park Arena Komaki in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on September 17.
Middle blocker Park Eun-jin (26, JungKwanJang), making her third appearance on the Asian Games stage, reflected on the heavy responsibility of wearing the Taegeuk mark and expressed her strong determination to win a medal.
Today (September 17), in the Group D preliminary match against Qatar at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at Park Arena Komaki in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, Park led South Korea to a 3-0 (25-6, 25-6, 25-10) sweeping victory by scoring a match-high 15 points, including five service aces.
Particularly in the first set, after successfully executing an attack at 11-4, she reeled off three consecutive service aces and added another ace at 17-4, taking the lead in securing an early victory for South Korea.
When asked after the match if this was the match of her life, Park replied, "That may be so, but since the teams we will face from now on are stronger, I think I tried to focus even more."
This tournament marks Park's third Asian Games.
She won a bronze medal at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, where she competed as a high school student.
However, at the 2022 Hangzhou Games, the team finished in fifth place without a medal after struggling, including a 2-3 comeback loss to Vietnam in the group stage after winning the first two sets.
Looking back, Park said, "When I participated as a high school student, the senior players mostly carried the matches. Given how regrettable the games were in Hangzhou, everyone has prepared hard with the determination not to repeat those same mistakes."
She added, "As we play match by match in this tournament, it feels different from back then. I think we will see good results."
Park has competed in four consecutive international tournaments starting with the AVC Cup last June.
"Honestly, it would be a lie to say there is no physical burden," she said. "Since wearing the Taegeuk mark on our chests is not something that comes easily, I am working even harder with a sense of responsibility to achieve good results in every tournament."
Her determination to win a medal is also strong.
"I think we cannot afford not to desire a medal," she emphasized. "Both the coaching staff and the players share the same mind-set that we must win a medal no matter what. A gold medal would be even better, but we are approaching it with the mindset of securing a medal regardless of its color."
South Korea will play its final group stage match against Vietnam on September 18 to decide first place in Group D.
Park vowed, "We have won all our matches against Vietnam this year, but they are by no means an easy opponent. Without letting our guard down, we will do our best point by point and set by set to make sure we win."
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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