Football - HWANG SUN HONG

General
PLAYING CAREER
He made more than 100 appearances for the Republic of Korea team and played at the 2002 World Cup in the Republic of Korea and Japan, where the Korean side reached the semifinals. He scored the team's opening goal at the tournament. "Of course, playing at home is an advantage but I don't think the referees were biased. We got results through trying our best and lots of effort. We trained hard and worked hard. Compared to before, there was much more competition for places. We grew more confident that we could win and did so fairly and squarely. Our first target was to win our first World Cup game. Our second target was to reach the second round. When we did so, that was success for us. I didn't expect to reach the semifinal. I can't explain [how it felt to score the team's first goal of the tournament]. It was a goal I had waited so long for. It was a goal that had deep meaning for Korea. I can't express the feeling. I was so happy." (soccerphile, 15 Dec 2007)

HIDDINK'S INFLUENCE
Dutch football coach Guus Hiddink has been an influential figure in his career. Hiddink was the coach of the Korean team at the 2002 World Cup in the Republic of Korea and Japan. "Korean football was so limited before he joined but after he led us to fourth place at the FIFA 2002 World Cup, we really believed we could challenge anyone on the world stage. I got such a thrill seeing how happy our football fans were at that tournament, and it motivates me to aim for that as a coach myself. Hiddink gave me that goal, so that's why he'd be the greatest influence in my football life." (the-afc, 14 Jul 2017)