It was truly a ‘hidden gem’. Although he did not receive much attention until high school, the presence he showed as soon as he entered the university stage surprised many. Despite being in his freshman year, he was active as a main player and proudly ranked first in the blocking category in the 2022 KUSF University Volleyball U-League. He showed great potential. A great gemstone wants to grow into a more sparkling gem in the future by polishing and polishing itself.

“I felt the walls of college”
Kim Jin-young’s first year as a freshman

one day in December. It was a bit cold windy, but it was a nice sunny day for taking pictures. I arrived at the Chungnam National University gym first and was waiting, but a person approached me from afar. He had an intuition that the one who showed off his tall height was the player who promised to be interviewed. Before the interview, a photo was taken. The expression on his face was full of awkwardness. As soon as the shooting was all over, he sighed and said, “I think volleyball is the easiest.” When asked how he felt about being interviewed by <The Spike>, he said, “I was lying in bed when I got a call, and I was surprised. I thought, ‘Why me?’, but I suddenly became nervous. He laughed, saying, “It was difficult to take pictures, but it was fun when I actually did it.”

Kim Jin-young caught a volleyball for the first time in the second year of middle school. He said, “I was participating in a sports club, and then the coach of Youngsaeng High School saw me and suggested becoming a volleyball player. He was taller than his peers, but when he was in his second year of middle school, he started playing volleyball as he grew up.”

He went through Songsan Middle School and Songsan High School before entering Chungnam National University. On April 29, 2022, Jinyoung Kim made his first appearance on the college stage. Despite being his freshman year, he took to the court against Inha University, the first game of the 2022 KUSF University Volleyball U-League. The result was a shutout loss. The shock of defeat came more than the thrill of the first time.

However, he created a catalyst for growth. Among the games he played in college volleyball, Kim Jin-young said that his first league match against Inha University was the most memorable. He said, “I felt the walls of the university. He only thought he had to work harder.”

“It came as a shock to me that I only scored two points on the fast break that day. I made a training routine right away, worked hard with weights, and even after court training, I did individual workouts by myself. If something went wrong, I thought more and tried to do better.”

The freshman’s first place , the excitement he
finally felt, the sweat he shed hard came to fruition. Kim Jin-young ranked first in the U-League with 1.105 blocks per set. It was the only record of more than one per set. She also ranked 3rd in blocking (0.889 per set) at the 2022 Korean Air National University Volleyball Goseong Tournament. In particular, in the match against Chosun University in the Goseong tournament, he caught a whopping 8 blocks. And Chungnam National University met Inha University again at the 2022 Goseong Tournament following the U-League. The match was lost again, but a meaningful record was left. It was the first set they won against Inha University, who was on an undefeated streak. However, he expressed regret about his performance. Kim Jin-young said, “It was good to bring the first set, but when I saw it myself, I couldn’t do much. After the game, I thought a lot on my own, and I reflected a lot in the process of finding out why it didn’t work.” Afterwards, at the 2022 Korean Air Cup National Collegiate Volleyball Muan Tournament, he again ranked first with 0.882 blocking per set. Although Chungnam National University did not achieve clear results in all three competitions, it clearly imprinted its name on the university stage when looking at individual records.

However, Kim Jin-young wanted the team to achieve good results more than his own performance. It means more to us that we did it together. Even though the results were disappointing, everyone prepared hard, so the team atmosphere was really good.”

And at the last tournament of the year, they reached the finals for the second time since the team was founded. On October 12, 2022, Chungnam National University played the finals of the men’s university division of the 103rd National Sports Festival. He wore a silver medal around his neck.

I finally felt the excitement of the first time. “It was the first time I went to the gym while playing volleyball. I got a good result in my first sports event and got a medal for the first time, so I felt really good (laughs).”

I became more greedy and more serious

about volleyball. Of course, there were difficult moments while playing volleyball. During his freshman year of high school, he went through a slump and briefly left the court. “I had a bad left knee since middle school. Then came a slump that went all the way to his ankles in his freshman year of high school. He stopped playing volleyball for about six months because he was too stressed because his original skills weren’t coming out even after he completed rehabilitation.”

But half a year later he caught the volleyball again. He also took his mind back. He took Japanese men’s volleyball team’s middle blocker Lee Haku as a role model and followed and studied. Kim Jin-young said, “I usually watch overseas volleyball a lot, but I saw it for the first time through an algorithm. I felt that the physical condition and fast-break swing were similar. So I watch the video, refer to it and learn a lot.”

“I am not tall as a middle blocker. So he has to jump high to keep up with the other players in height. So he’s doing a lot of lower body weights and functional exercises.”

He has a bona fide competitor too. He says he gets a lot of stimulation from watching the same middle blocker, Lee Joon-young of Hanyang University. Kim Jin-young said, “I played the semi-finals of the National Sports Festival against Hanyang University. I especially enjoyed it more because (Lee) Jun-yeong was on the opponent’s court,” he recalled. 카지노

“Every time I saw Junyoung, I always thought he was good. So, I watched some of the youth national team games that Junyoung played, and I felt that he was much better after returning from the national team. If Junyoung does better, I get the motivation to do better too. She wanted to get close to Junyoung, but she was shy and couldn’t get close. But after the sports game, Junyeong said that he did a good job, and that she wanted to get to know him too, but she said that she was shy and couldn’t talk. She thanked her first for contacting her. After that, I said hello the next time we meet (laughs).”

I spent a meaningful year as a new volleyball player and college student. Regarding her first college life, “it was difficult because her study habits didn’t stick to her until high school. She didn’t study hard, but she tried to answer as hard as she could in class,” she laughs.

However, through the experience she accumulated during her year, she became more greedy for volleyball than in the past. Kim Jin-young said, “She has become more greedy than in high school. If you just worked hard in high school, now you want a bigger stage. Through more self-objectification, I think about what I lack and I am working hard on weights. Her athletic side has become more serious,” he said, referring to the changed part.

She also talked about the Chungnam National University teammates and coach Lee Ki-beom.
“While playing volleyball, I found it difficult to be the coach. But director Lee Ki-beom helped me a lot. He usually gets along well with the players and tells a lot of really good things. Chungnam National University volleyball team has a good senior-junior relationship and encourages and supports each other during sports. I enjoy playing volleyball. I always train in a good atmosphere (laughs).”

For the first time, I met the people I was grateful for who supported me. Kim Jin-young said, “I met a lot of people. Among them, there is a person who gave me flowers after the game, and he received flowers for the first time in his life. The first time I received it, I was very excited. It is the most memorable,” he laughed.

Let’s do it as much as last year, Kim Jin-young’s New Year’s goal

This is the 2023 goal set by Kim Jin-young. He said, “I think I did better than I thought in my freshman year, so I feel pressured, but I’m looking forward to it. I want to improve my body more than I do now so that I can block as well as I do now, and I want to increase the success rate of quick attacks. Not too long ago, the director gave me a mandalat assignment. In addition, in 2023, in a competition excluding the National Sports Festival, it was written, ‘Be sure to enter the semifinals’. I also want to show you how to play volleyball brightly on the court.”

He also shared a larger goal. “My goal is to go pro,” he said. When I enter the court, I want to become a player that everyone can trust. It’s something I’ve had in my heart since high school, but if I go pro and earn money by working hard, I want to give it to many people, including my family, who have helped me so far.”

During the interview, I could feel how sincere he was about volleyball. Lastly, he asked for the story of Kim Jin-young, who is not a volleyball player. “I want to be polite, not arrogant, and moral. I shy away a lot, but when I pay attention to myself, I like it a lot on my own (laughs). I am a person who works harder through attention, so please like me more.”