Kim Bo-reum captures silver in mass start amid bullying scandal

GANGNEUNG, South Korea, Feb. 24, (Yonhap) -- South Korean female speed skater Kim Bo-reum on Saturday finished second in the final of the mass start discipline, overcoming concern that a recent bullying scandal would hinder her performance in the race. Kim was considered a strong medal favorite as she ranked No. 1 in the mass start for the 2016-2017 season of the International Skating Union World Cup. The skater injured her back this season, causing her to fall to 10th place, but Kim recovered as she prepared for the country's first Winter Olympics. Until Kim passed the preliminaries for the mass start on Saturday, not many expected that the 25-year-old skater to show her best on the ice. Over the past week, the public condemned Kim for a controversial remark she made after the team pursuit's preliminary, where she blamed her teammate for the team's failure to move on to the finals. Three athletes form a single team in the team pursuit event, and the final result is determined by when last member finishes. Despite standing as one of most prominent South Korean athletes at the 2018 Winter Games, her reputation went downhill after she far outpaced her teammate Noh Seon-yeong without looking back. Kim, who said the result was attributable to a lack of communication, and that the team would have made to semifinals if the three finished together, immediately caused a public uproar. Nearly 600,000 South Koreans signed a petition calling for her to be disqualified from the national team. Kim started her career as the short track speed skater, but converted to long track in 2010 as a high school sophomore. This was Kim's second Olympics. Park Ji-woo, who also ran in the controversial team pursuit, failed to reach finals at the mass start by standing in ninth place in her group. The skater is also under fire for defending Kim on her social media page. "I am sorry," Park told reporters after the mass start race at the mixed-zone. colin@yna.co.kr (END)