“Cheers to a second fall that will be more beautiful than anyone else’s!”
South Korean women’s soccer legend Jeon “Supersonic” Ga-eul said goodbye to her fans on Friday with an official retirement ceremony against the Philippines.
Born in 1988, Jeon is an icon of defiance and an attacker who led the golden age of Korean women’s soccer. A game-changer with quick feet, fluent technique, strong fighting spirit, and sharp free kicks, Jeon was loved by fans as “Supersonic,” “Jeon Beckham,” and “Autumn Legend.” She joined Suwon Facilities Management Corporation (now Suwon FC) in 2008 and played for Incheon Hyundai Steel, Hwacheon KSPO, and Sejong Sports Toto. In 2010, she led Suwon to its first WK League title and was named MVP of the championship match, and later won three WK League titles (2013, 2014, and 2015) with Incheon Hyundai Steel.
Throughout her career, Jeon has never hesitated to take on “firsts” for herself and her younger teammates. She is the only player to have played in three different leagues: the United States, Australia, and England. In 2016, she became the first Korean women’s soccer player to play in the U.S., joining the Western New York Flash, 카지노사이트 followed by Melbourne Victory in Australia in 2017 and Bristol City and Reading in England in 2020.
She also had a stellar 12-year national team career.
From her debut against Vietnam in the 2007 Beijing Olympic Qualifiers to the 2019 friendly against Iceland, she spent 12 years in the colors, scoring 38 goals in 101 games. Her 38 A-match goals are the second most by a South Korean woman in history, behind only Ji So-yeon (Seattle Reign). She scored the winning header against Costa Rica at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada (2-2 draw) to lead the women’s national team to their first-ever World Cup Round of 16 appearance, led the team to the 2009 Universiade in Belgrade with 12 goals and won the tournament, and was there for all of South Korea’s women’s soccer glory, including three consecutive bronze medals at the Asian Games (2010, 2014, 2018).
After announcing her retirement from the WK League at the end of the 2023 season with Sejong Sports Betting, Jeon is well on her way to a post-retirement career that will see her serve as a women’s soccer commentator at the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand and the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, as well as launching a new sports-related business.
Since 2002, the Korea Football Association has organized retirement ceremonies for male and female players who have played at least 70 A-match matches. This was the second official retirement ceremony for the women’s national team after Yoo Young-sil (current head coach of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, 71 A matches) in 2008, and the first to be held during an A match.
Jeon was the ‘match ball carrier’ before the start of the match
Carrying the match ball herself, and then handed it to the referee before taking the final pitch. During the official retirement ceremony at halftime, the Korea Football Association played a commemorative video of Jeon on the Icheon Sports Complex’s big screen. The words, “There was an autumn everywhere in the spring of Korean women’s soccer,” along with moments of Jeon’s brilliant performances, including her equalizer against Costa Rica at the 2015 World Cup in Canada, flashed across the screen like a beacon. “The autumn leaves that have been running beautifully and are well-colored are more beautiful than spring flowers, so we are cheering for the second autumn that will be more beautiful than anyone else!” The words, “Jeon Autumn!” and “Jeon Autumn!” were met with enthusiastic applause from the stands.
Chung Mong-kyu, president of the Korea Football Association, presented Jeon with a plaque of appreciation and a bouquet of flowers, while captain Kim Hye-ri and her “best friend” Cho So-hyun, who has been with the team since the 2009 Belgrade Universiade gold medal, presented her with a framed No. 7 jersey with their hearts. When it came time for the retirement ceremony, Jeon got emotional as she stood on the field. “When I saw my teammates, 토토사이트 추천 I suddenly burst into tears,” he said, before bowing his head and collecting himself. “Everything I have achieved is thanks to my teammates, coaches, and everyone else. I am a very lucky athlete. I will continue to share the love I have received with the world and live an exemplary life as a soccer player. I say goodbye and thank you from the bottom of my heart.