High-Altitude Training Proves to Be a 'Masterstroke,' Leading to Victory Through Stamina

[Anchor]

The national team has been training at high altitudes for over three weeks to adapt to the environment in Mexico. Our team overwhelmed the opponent, who ran out of steam in the second half, with superior stamina. The high-altitude training ultimately proved to be a masterstroke.

Reporter Hong Seok-jun has the story.

[Reporter]

The primary reason for the early elimination of the Hong Myung-bo squad at the 2014 Brazil tournament with one draw and two losses was a failure in conditioning.

Due to a delayed yellow fever vaccination, many players struggled to regain their form even after the tournament began, leading to poor performance.

Learning from the failure 12 years ago, Manager Hong prepared meticulously.

Ahead of this tournament, which is being held at high altitude, he consulted with experts and set up a pre-tournament camp in Salt Lake City, USA, and a base camp in Guadalajara, where the first and second matches are taking place.

After spending over three weeks at high altitude since May 19 to complete their adaptation, Manager Hong expressed his confidence.

[Hong Myung-bo / National Football Team Manager (June 11): I believe our team has left no stone unturned in preparing for this tournament.]

The results of the training shone through from the very first match.

The Czech players, who arrived at the high-altitude venue just a day earlier, grew increasingly sluggish, while our team, still full of energy, continuously exploited the space behind the Czech defense, scoring two goals in the latter half of the second period to pull off a thrilling comeback.

[Hong Myung-bo / National Football Team Manager (June 12): Our players followed everything we prepared very thoroughly.]

The national team dominated the Czech Republic with 56% possession compared to their 34%, and created the foundation for victory by forcing 10 more turnovers through aggressive pressing.

[Oh Hyeon-gyu / National Football Team Forward: We have been preparing since Salt Lake City, overcoming really tough training sessions. That effort became our strength and helped us (achieve this victory).]

Having secured a win through stamina built on thorough preparation, the national team is now preparing for another victory.

(Video coverage: Hwang In-seok, Video editing: Hwang Ji-young)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.