Participated in 300 A-matches in 21 years. Lee Nam-yong (40, Seongnam City Hall), the infamous field hockey national team player, laughed and said, “I must be crazy about hockey.” At the same time, he lowered his body, saying, “Still, I only know 70% of hockey.”
In an interview held on the메이저놀이터 2nd at the Seongnam Hockey Stadium in Gyeonggi Province, Lee Nam-yong recalled the FIH World Cup held in India last month and his 20-year career as a national team member.
On the 25th of last month, Lee Nam-yong played against the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) World Cup. It was his 300th game (45 goals) in his career. It has been 21 years since his A-match debut in September 2002. Lee Nam-yong said, “I lived crazy about hockey, which I happened to encounter in middle school.
Lee Nam-yong laid a decisive foothold in winning the penalty shootout with a 5-5 equalizer right before the end of the round of 16 against Argentina (ranked 7th in the world). Lee Nam-yong said, “Thanks to our solidarity and not giving up, we defeated the Olympic champion.” It was the first quarterfinal in 13 years since the 2010 World Cup. As Korea, which has poor infrastructure and lacks players, it maintained its pride as the best in Asia. Korea is the only Asian country in the quarterfinals this time.Lee Nam-yong even wore the captain’s armband as the oldest player in this World Cup. Lee Nam-yong said, “My management is not easy at this age, but I sometimes had to say something I didn’t like while taking care of my juniors.” Lee Nam-yong, of course, took the lead. Lee Nam-yong said, “Training that is stronger than actual combat and meticulous self-management are in my body,” and “I still maintain my weight and body fat when I was young.”
Lee Nam-yong is a veteran among veterans who have participated in the World Cup, Asian Games, and Olympics several times. He led them to Malaysia in 2002, fourth place in the 2006 World Cup in Germany, gold medals in the 2002 Busan and 2006 Doha Asian Games, and bronze medals in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. He also contributed to the 6th place at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 8th place at the 2012 London Olympics. There is only one Olympic ticket allocated to Asia. Participating in the Olympics means being the best in Asia.
Lee Nam-yong thinks he will play more as a player for one or two years at most. His remaining goals are to win the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023 and secure qualification for the Paris Olympics in 2024. Lee Nam-yong said, “If I win a gold medal in Hangzhou, I can qualify for the Olympics.” Korean men’s hockey won a silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and four consecutive appearances until London in 2012, but did not go to the 2016 and 2020 Olympics. Lee Nam-yong said, “I want to give my juniors a chance to participate in the Olympics,” and “I hope they win an Olympic medal that I didn’t win.”
Lee Nam-yong advised his juniors to challenge Europe. Lee Nam-yong said, “I once played in the Netherlands, but I still don’t know the latest tactics.” Lee Nam-yong emphasized, “In Europe, if you do not show your skills properly, you will be ignored.”
Korean hockey infrastructure is poor. There are only 5 male and 6 female teams. There are 28 middle school, 29 high school, and 15 college teams. There are about 1200 registered players. Lee Nam-yong said, “From a young age, we should focus on strengthening individual capabilities rather than grades.” .