south korea – AsianDarts

Interview with Jaein Oh: ‘I am investing for my dream’

1 augustus 2023AsianDartsEen reactie plaatsen

It’s been yet another while, but today I’m happy to announce a small interview with South Korean darts player ‘Jaein Oh’, who participates in most of the PDC Asian Tours, the WDF World Masters and Open and soon the PDC World Youth Championship. At those tournaments, he played the likes of Paul Lim, Jelle Klaasen, Xiaochen Zong and Mathew Lee. I’ve known Jaein for a while now, so time to ask him some questions about his career in darts and what drives him to play all of these international tournaments (which obviously cost a lot). Please enjoy!

Jaein Oh at the WDF Winmau World Masters in 2022 in Assen, The Netherlands

Can you write an introduction about yourself?

Hi I’m Jaein Oh from South Korea. I’m 24 years old. I live in Seongnam city. My name pronunciation is same to Jane, but I am a boy : )

How and when did you start playing darts?

When I was 19. I worked at beer pub. There was a soft tip darts machine, so I first experienced it.

Can you tell something more about the darts scene in South Korea?

There are two soft tip darts leagues in Korea:
1. Dartslive Korea Stage
2. Phoenixdarts Perfect Korea
Unfortunately, Steel tip darts competitions are very few. Korea can do Soft tip darts, but Steel tip darts is hard to experience. When I practice Soft tip darts, I go to the Bar or Beer pub, The place where I go to practice is Magnum bar or Wero pub. These are located in Moran, Seongnam. When I practice steel tip darts, I usually practice at home using Nakka. Sometime I go to Wero pub because the owner hangs a steel tip darts board on the wall in the store for me.

Steel tip darts is obviously less popular than soft tip darts in South Korea. Why do you think is that?

Soft tip darts game can make money. When play the 501 games, we have to pay 1,000 won (0,61 pounds/0,71 euros) per leg. That’s it. And a lot of owners are concerned about the safety of Steel tip darts. So that’s why many people can’t experience about steel tip darts.

You play a lot of international tournaments (PDC Asian Tour, WDF Winmau Masters and Open, PDC World Youth Championship). What motivates you to travel all the way to play those tournaments?

My dream is to participate at the PDC World Championship. So I think I need more experience. It takes a lot of money to participate in international competitions, but I think I am investing for my dream

And can you tell something about your best experience at an international darts tournament? What moment or match has been memorable to you?

I remember a lot of matches. I have to choose the 2022 Winmau World Masters. Because I felt the wall from the world class players. That is make me more practice. (Jeain participated in the World Masters and Open where he played Jelle Klaasen).

You’re still young, how do you balance darts with work or studies?

My job in Korea is a traditionally rice cake baker. I have to get up very early. On Monday to Thursday, I work from 2am to 8pm. So I don’t have much sleeping time. I try to practice every day. I can sleep for 5 hours, but I use one hour to practice. I practice most of the time even on my day off.

Which darts player (or players) is or are your inspiration, and why?

Hyunchul Park. Because I think he is an all time legend in Korea. I’m a really big fan of him. He went to Japan for play darts, won the Japan Soft tip darts tournaments, and has a very good career in The World Softip darts tournaments and PDC Asian Tour.

What are your goals and aspirations for your darting career in the coming years?

Maybe not next month. Maybe not next year. But I promise. I will be World Champion

You also play the DARTSLIVE soft tip tournaments in South Korea. Can you tell something about those tournaments and your experience?

I only participated in one stage and I need to play more games, but I know there are many good players in Korea playing these tournaments.

Do you have a final message for the readers?

Hi I’m Jaein Oh. Thank you for reading the interview and if you want to know more about me follow my Instagram (jaeinohkr). Thank you!

Interview with SangWoo Kim: ‘I’m aiming for the PDC’

5 december 202027 december 2020AsianDartsEen reactie plaatsen

(Pictures: SangWoo Kim)

Whenever possible, I tune in to watch some darts livestreams on YouTube, and ‘DartsTV SangWoo’ was one of the first channels I started following. SangWoo Kim posts livestreams and viewers can send questions, messages and thus it’s a very interactive, but also informative channel. In the meanwhile, he also plays darts himself in South Korea. Time to get to know SangWoo better.

Name: SangWoo Kim
Age: 36
Country: South Korea
Major Sponsor:

JAZZ

YouTube
Instagram

About Darts

When did you start playing darts?

I started in September 2011 and am now playing for nearly nine years.

The KDC League is currently being held, and you have won one of the tournaments. Can you tell me about the tournament and the championship?

This was my first official steeldart match. I’ve been focusing on soft darts for nine years, but now I want to play in the PDC as well as steel darts. I believe that winning this tournament will be a big stepping stone for me and I will continue to work hard for good results.

*Writers note: KDC League Championship is a series of tournaments, hosted by PDK and KDF, where players participate in their local leagues, and at the end of the season, a final tournament with the best players determines the WDF Team Korea representatives for that year. This year would’ve been for the Asia Pacific Cup in Taipei, which is cancelled.

You participated in the Korea Perfect Tour. Why did you chose the Perfect Tour?

Phoenix Darts is the most active in Korea. Many professional players in Korea are challenging the Perfect Tour and there are many people who are good at it. I chose to participate in the Perfect Tour because I thought it would be the best honor to compete and win there.

What has been your best performance in darts so far?

Up to the best 32 on the Perfect Tour. I’ve won many other competitions.

Have you ever hit a 9-darter? If so, when?

I haven’t done nine darts yet. I’ve done 10 darts a lot. (PRO MODE)

How much do you practice?

When I practiced darts hard, I practiced for 8 to 9 hours.
But these days, I practice for about 3 hours a day to keep my posture.

Soft darts is very popular in Korea. Do you know why soft darts is popular and steel darts is not so much?

In South Korea, darts is recognized as an unfamiliar sport. So, to enjoy darts, it was only possible in bars and electronic soft darts were better for people to notice. That’s why soft darts developed naturally.
I think this is a similar situation to Japan, but I know that Japan is naturally changing into a steel dart country, because there are many players whose goal is to advance to the PDC, the world stage.
Soft darts are more popular in Korea now, but I think steel darts will become more popular someday.

Who is your inspiration for darts?

At first it was the Japanese player Hoshino Mitsumasa, but now it’s Masumi Chino, also a player from Japan.
I’m imitating posture, mind, and performance. Because of that, I heard about Masumi Chino in Korea. (This is what I heard directly from a Japanese professional.)

What are your goals in the future?

My goal is to win the Korea Perfect Tour. And I’m also aiming to join the PDC by playing steel darts.

About YouTube

Why and when did you start streaming darts on YouTube?

I started YouTube four years ago, and I was uploading videos of my club, and I started making and uploading videos of darts in January 2019. Streaming began in January 2020 and I am communicating things that cannot be delivered through video alone through streaming.

What is your favorite thing to stream on YouTube?

When people ask me about things they don’t know about darts, I find it interesting to teach them technically. I feel the best when I hear that what I told them was helpful to them.

What is the most interesting thing that happened in the stream?

Bottle cap challenge, darting in small coins, and dartpin shooting with a gun.
In particular, the Bottle Cap Challenge was most interesting when it was successful because it was possible only by using an accurate dart line.

Is it hard to keep coming up with new ideas? And how do you get inspiration for the video?

I like to make videos cinematic. I’m still an amateur, but I’m getting better and better, and I always think about creative new things to try. Creation seems to be a pretty tough job, but the result is the best satisfaction.

Can you tell me about your sponsor, Jazz?

Jazz Barrel is a famous brand in Korea. The motto is ”FOR THE BEST PERFORMANCE”. Now famous Korean players, Cho Kwang-hee and Seo Byung-soo, were also former Jazz Barrel players. They’ve always made a good barrel at a low price, and many people still want to be a jazz player.

Do you have a message for the readers?

Darts is not very popular in South Korea yet. Through YouTube and Twitch, I’m promoting darts to Koreans and practicing hard to win. Thank you so much!

Cho Kwanghee about his Darts School and book: ‘I want to give courage’

5 december 202027 december 2020AsianDartsEen reactie plaatsen

It’s been just a little over a month since South Korean darts player ‘Cho Kwanghee’ played his magical weekend in Assen during the 2020 Dutch Open Darts. He won the WDDA Winmau World Championship and the Dutch Open Paradarts competition. He came to the Netherlands as probably the most unknown player of the tournament and returned home as a World Champion.
In South Korea, Cho was already one of the most popular players so an even busier time was waiting for him, including multiple tv appearances. He appeared on OBS경인TV where he spoke about the Dutch Open, his darts school, disability darts and his own progress.

His story

First, Cho explains his condition and why he participated in the WDDA and paradarts tournament. He has been fully paralysed. After three years of not being able to move he started training by himself. He’s now able to walk again after much effort. He still occasionally has a lot of pain in his legs because he still suffers from the effects of the paralysis. Cho also tells about how he spent his days during the tournament in Europe: ‘It’s hard. I woke up, went to the venue, played for a very long day and went back to the hotel to try to get some sleep (which wasn’t much). The next day I woke up and went to the venue, played and went back to the hotel again’.

Kwanghee Cho Darts School - OBS경인TV — Kwanghee Cho Darts School – OBS경인TV

Darts for everyone

Two big banners stand tall in the room, showing the best of Cho’s achievements from the past years. Quite a couple of students came to visit the Darts School to learn from the ‘World #1’. From what we can see, there are three soft tip boards to play on, all manufactured by POP!DART. They supplied the school with a low board as well so that people who are unable to stand for long as well as wheelchair players can also play and practice. Cho proudly shows the board: ‘Everyone can play darts. Even sick people and people with disabilities’.
An elderly couple comes in to practice and learn, praising Cho for becoming World Champion despite the paralysis he had to overcome.

Family

After Darts School, Cho sets off to visit his mother and cook for her. The two clearly have a good bond and have been through some stuff, including the paralysis and the passing of Cho’s father when Cho was still young. Cho:
‘My mother is not feeling well, I do what I can to help’.

Dream

When asked about his dream (주인공의 꿈은 뭘까요?), it’s one thing that comes to mind: Cho has been writing down his story for it to become a book. He hopes many people will read it and says: ‘I want to give people courage’.

For those interested, you can rewatch the full item here. Note: It’s in Korean and does not include subtitles, but it’s still a fun watch! Kwanghee’s part starts at around 27 minutes. I tried my best to write a summary of the programme in English so that many people can understand. All pictures were sent to me by Kwanghee himself, thank you so much! Credit for the programme goes to OBS경인TV.

My Dutch Open Darts with Cho Kwanghee

5 december 202030 december 2020AsianDartsEen reactie plaatsen

Note before reading: This is not an objective article. It’s an article about a champion, a great player, a wonderful friend and how I have experienced this weekend.

Remember how I was very excited for the arrival of Kwanghee (I always call him Kwang…) to my wonderful country the Netherlands? Because he was going to play the WDDA Winmau World Championship during the Dutch Open Darts as well as the Paradarts competition on Saturday. I wrote articles a couple of times before about how well Kwanghee plays in South Korea. I also told Kwanghee before he departed that he would win the tournament, because I have believed in him from the moment he got the wildcard and I will believe in him until forever.

Friday (WDDA Winmau World Championship)

Friday I arrived at the venue with the idea of taking some pictures of Kwanghee and a couple of other players. Kwanghee was the first player I met, and he instantly recognized my face. We talked a bit and I promised to watch his match after putting my pictures on the laptop. I ended up helping him all day, which was fun to do 🙂

First round up was Bernard Martens from Belgium. Bernard wasn’t playing his best game, so Kwanghee flew through this game and won 3-0. Second game he played Paul Hampton. This was a tougher match, but still a 3-1 win. Into the quarter finals Kwanghee met Peter Bramley and got 2-0 behind. A 180 saw him getting back and he won the match 3-2. The semifinal was played against Jonathan Hirst, great scoring from Kwanghee saw him win 3-0. Kwanghee got wings during the day and made the final where he met Mike Callaghan from England. Another great game between the two, Kwanghee nearly missed a 170 for the match, Mike missed a 132 finish, both played well. Kwanghee won 3-1 and lifted the trophy, flowers, another trophy, banner and so much stuff he couldn’t hold it, haha. I got the flowers to put in a vase at home. I drove Kwanghee back to his hotel where he got me a big bag of Korean food to eat during my way home. Saturday would see the Dutch Open Paradarts tournament, but honestly both of us didn’t grab a lot of sleep and the players field would increase from 32 to 80+ participants, so another exciting day would begin…

WDDA Winmau World Championship 2020 Kwanghee Cho Merel van Selm — WDDA Winmau World Championship 2020

Saturday (Dutch Open Paradarts Competition)

Saturday I made my way to the Bonte Wever in Assen again. Kwanghee arrived at 9.30 and the playing area was so much busier than Friday with the many more participants. Most of the time, we sat on the ground and trash bin. Kwanghee started out in the L128, didn’t receive a bye like most players did. I remember most of the matches went 3-0 because even though Kwanghee was very tired, he played even better than Friday. The two matches I remember best were the match against Philip Smith, where Kwang got 2-0 up and then it go so, so close in the end. Kwanghee won 3-2 hitting D1 to win the match, I remember being such a nervous jelly and I heard so many people behind me say it was over for Kwanghee… Also the match against Peter Bramley in the semis was good, it ended up in a 4-2 win for Kwanghee and so it was the final again. This time he was up against the Dutch Jaap Pol, who was obviously crowd favorite. Shame for the Dutch supporters (wait, I’m Dutch…) because Kwanghee won 4-0. That means both titles go home to South Korea and another bouquet of flowers went home with me. I have made them into one big bouquet.

Kwanghee hit an 11 darter (I thought it was 12, but some people say 11, some say 12), on Saturday, it was amazing to see him doing so well. With the wins, Kwanghee made history by being the first South Korean World Champ. On top of everything he achieved in South Korea, we say: Kwanghee made history, I teach history.

Sunday

We were asked to do one interview on Sunday so I decided to take Kwanghee to see the other finals which we watched from the balcony. He normally watches these tournaments on stream, so for him to see such a big tournament live was a great experience. Overall, I can say this was an amazing experience for both of us. I’m glad Kwanghee enjoyed his stay in the Netherlands and honored I could be part of all of this. I’ve already thanked most people in person, but again I want to thank everyone who has been part of this experience and made this a great weekend for both of us. All of the staff, de Bonte Wever, the NDB, Winmau, the tournament directors and officials, the photographers for taking pictures and most of all, the players and their supporters who made this such a fun tournament. Also thanks to Professional Darts Korea (PDK) for making it possible to send Kwanghee over to the Netherlands.

Kwang and I became very good friends (I have a good brother in South Korea now) so most of all, I’m incredibly happy and it’s an experience I’ll never forget. I hope it will be possible to get Kwang to Europe more often, and I still hope there will be opportunities for me to do journalism in Asia. I will work even harder now!

*(For everyone who wants to know about why Kwanghee was at this tournament, I recommend to watch this on YouTube, you can put English captions on)