Indonesian fan attempts suicide following Jonghyun‘s death

Following Jonghyun’s untimely death that spread grief around the globe, an Indonesial female fan’s recent suicide attempt has sparked a possible copycat suicide alert. 

According to Indonesian media reports Thursday, the fan was found unconscious from an overdose and hospitalized in an apparent suicide attempt. On Monday she left suicidal posts on her Twitter account, the day Jonghyun passed away. 


She wrote, “I can‘t endure it anymore. Mom, dad, Jonghyun oppa, we’ll meet really soon” in both Korean and English. It is also reported that in a previous post she wrote, “Should I give up my life for now since I lost both of my parents and my idol? It's stressing me out."

Indonesian media reported that the fan gained consciousness Tuesday afternoon, regretting her behavior. She shut down her Twitter account after leaving thank you messages to fellow fans for worrying about her. 

In the wake of the incident, concerns have risen that the K-pop act’s suicide might have a contagious effect on young fans who may emulate self-destructive behavior, known as “the Werther effect.” 

According to Bangkok Post, the Department of Mental Health in Thailand has released a statement warning parents to monitor their children’s behavior to see if there are any changes following Jonghyun’s death. Indonesian media also reported that another female fan fainted after refusing any food or drinks in shock of the superstar’s death. 

Jonghyun was found unconscious at a rented studio apartment in Seoul on Monday. He was pronounced dead shortly after being sent to a hospital. Investigators ruled it a suicide. His funeral took place at Seoul Asan Hospital Thursday, attended by family members, as well as officials and artists of S.M. Entertainment.

(lotus@heraldcorp.com) 

Rangers' Choo Shin-soo looks forward to facing two-way Japanese

South Korea and Japan have long been archrivals in sports, and the history isn't lost on Texas Rangers' Korean outfielder Choo Shin-soo.

The Rangers' division rivals, Los Angeles Angels, acquired two-way Japanese star Shohei Ohtani this offseason. An MVP-winning pitcher who also displayed impressive power at the plate in Japan, Ohtani has been among the most talked-about players before even playing his first Major League Baseball (MLB) game.

The two clubs will meet each other 19 times in the American League West in 2018. And Choo said he can't wait to see the hyped-up 23-year-old.

(Yonhap)

"Since we're in the same division, I'll try my best to beat him if we face each other," Choo told reporters at Incheon International Airport on Friday, after arriving home to spend some time with his family.

"I've never seen him play in person but I've heard a lot about him from other Japanese players," Choo added. "As a fellow Asian player, I wish him the best in the United States. Maybe things won't be so easy for him in America as they were in Japan. But he's a talented player and I think he'll do just fine."

Choo himself had a bounceback year after an injury-plagued 2016 season, when he was limited to just 49 games while making four trips to the disabled list.

In 2017, Choo played in 149 games and matched his career-high with 22 home runs. Choo also had 78 RBIs and scored 96 runs, while batting .261/.357/.423.

Choo now has three seasons left on his seven-year US$130 million deal with the Rangers. He will turn 36 next July.

Choo hasn't quite lived up to his massive deal, having missed significant time in both 2014 and 2016 seasons with injuries. He has also been subject to some trade speculation this offseason.

Choo insisted he has done the best he could in his healthy seasons with the Rangers.

"Personal stats are important, but I'd love to win a championship before my contract runs out," Choo said. "For next year, the goal is to win the (World Series) title."

Choo has been playing in the majors since 2005. He's a rare breed among Korean players who signed with a U.S. club out of high school and moved up the minor league ladder.

In recent years, some position players made their jump to the major leagues after putting in a few years in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), the top pro competition here. But those players haven't lasted very long. This offseason alone, infielder Park Byung-ho and outfielder Kim Hyun-soo have returned to the KBO after two years in America, and infielder Hwang Jae-gyun came home after just one year in the U.S. Choo is now the only Korean-born position player in the bigs, with Pittsburgh Pirates' infielder Kang Jung-ho still in limbo following his drunk driving conviction.

Choo said he understands fans' frustration at seeing these homegrown stars fail to make it in the majors, and he could also relate to what those players went through.

"It's usually more difficult for Korean players to get opportunities than Japanese players," Choo said. "And it's also not easy to make an impression in such limited opportunities. I know fans must have been disappointed but the players themselves must have found it hard to swallow, too."

As for players trying to take their crack at MLB, Choo said, "I think they should be as thoroughly prepared as possible." (Yonhap)

[PyeongChang 2018] Ticket sales for PyeongChang 2018 surpass 60 pct

Ticket sales for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics have surpassed 60 percent, the event‘s organizers said Sunday.

There are 47 days left until the Feb. 9 opening ceremony of the first Winter Games in South Korea. And as of Thursday, 655,000 tickets had been sold, or 61 percent of the organizers’ target of 1.07 million tickets.

The quadrennial competition will run through Feb. 25, with athletes competing for a record 102 gold medals across seven sports and 15 disciplines.

Sales for the tickets had been sluggish, but PyeongChang passed the 50 percent mark in ticket sales on Nov. 24. The organizing committee said the sales have picked up in recent weeks, with the torch relay, which began Nov. 1, now in full swing.

The recent opening of the new high-speed railway connecting Seoul and PyeongChang, some 180 kilometers east of the capital, should further boost ticket sales, the organizing committee added. 

Among different sports, alpine skiing has been the most popular so far, with 81 percent of the tickets sold, followed by cross-country skiing (79 percent), short track speed skating (74 percent) and bobsleigh (70 percent).

The opening ceremony has seen 67 percent of its tickets sold so far.

For the March 9-18 Winter Paralympics, 81,000 tickets, or 37 percent of the sales target of 220,000, had been sold as of Thursday.

All tickets can be purchased online at tickets.pyeongchang2018.com, or offline at select locations across the nation, including Seoul City Hall, Incheon and Gimpo international airports, and 19 KTX stations.

Benefits for Olympic ticket holders include discounts on KTX train tickets, free access to shuttle buses to and from competition venues, and toll exemptions on highways reaching PyeongChang and other Olympic hosting areas. (Yonhap)