[National Sports Festival] Taekwondo Song Da-bin says special thanks after 3 consecutive losses, “It’s all thanks to my brother”

(Jeju = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Kyung-yoon = National Taekwondo representative Song Da-bin (Ulsan Metropolitan City Sports Council), who won the gold medal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games and also won three consecutive titles at the National Sports Festival, expressed special gratitude to her older brother who led her down the path of Taekwondo.

Song Da-bin won the gold medal by defeating Baek Sun-kyung (Goyang City Hall) with a round score of 2-0 (10-0 0-0 dominant win) in the final of the Taekwondo women's over-67kg division at the 107th National Sports Festival held at Halla Gymnasium in Jeju City on the 19th.

After the game, he said, "I think I did well in Taekwondo. It's all thanks to my brother," and smiled brightly at his older brother, who was there.

Song Da-bin's connection with Taekwondo was thanks to her older brother Song Jae-ha, who is six years older than her.

When he was in elementary school, he visited a Taekwondo gym with his older brother, became interested in sports, and began his full-time athlete career at the age of 13.

Song Da-bin did not stand out until middle school, but his skills grew rapidly after entering high school, and he has become a top player in Korea since 2024, when he debuted on the professional stage.

Song Da-bin, wearing the Taegeuk symbol, defended the pride of Korean Taekwondo, which was on the verge of a 'no gold', by defeating Mu Wen-je (China) in the women's over-67kg final of the Taekwondo sparring event on the 3rd.

Song Da-bin, who achieved valuable results in his first Asian Games appearance, showed off his overwhelming skills in this competition and won for the third consecutive year.

On this day, Song Jae-ha personally came to the stadium to cheer, and after the game, he took a commemorative photo with Song Da-bin and shared the joy of winning.

Song Da-bin said, “I wouldn’t have started Taekwondo without my brother,” and added, “I’m so thankful.”

He continued with a smile, "Usually siblings are not close, but we tend to be close, perhaps because of the large age difference. My older brother always beats me up. Today, I gained a lot of strength thanks to him coming all the way to support me."

On this day, Song Da-bin had a bright expression throughout, but his physical condition was not very good.

After finishing the Asian Games, he immediately participated in the World Taekwondo Grand Prix held in Paris, France, and after returning home, he moved to Jeju Island without a break to participate in the National Sports Festival.

As the forced march continued, pain arose in my right ankle, which was my stepping foot.

Song Da-bin said, “It was a physically demanding schedule, but I played the game thinking as positively as possible,” and added, “Fortunately, my sense of the game was still alive, so I don’t think my performance was greatly affected.”

Now Song Da-bin is competing again for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

He said, “For a top heavyweight athlete, my speed is fast, which is my strength. Going forward, I want to further develop this strength and completely complement the inexperience revealed in game management.”