2016 Olympics Rankings: #9 Korea (Women)

The Korea women's volleyball team clocks in at No. 9 in our 2016 Olympics Rankings.

Jul 28, 2016 by Megan Kaplon

2016 Olympics Rankings: #9 Korea (Women)

By Bev Oden

The FloVolleyball Olympics Rankings will count down to the start of the indoor volleyball competition in Rio by highlighting one team per gender each day. Today, nine days before the first serve, we profile the No. 9-ranked Canada men and Korea women.

COUNTRY: Korea

TOP PLAYERS

Kim Yeon-Koung, Outside Hitter
Best Scorer and 4th Best Receiver at World Cup. Third Best Scorer and fourth Best Server at Olympic Qualifier

Kim Hee Jin, Middle Blocker
10th-Best Scorer at World Cup

Hyo Jin Yang, Middle Blocker
Most stuff blocks on the team at World Cup

RISING STAR TO WATCH

Soyoung Lee | 21 | Outside Hitter
Third-best hitter on the team in World Cup

SYNOPSIS

Korea did not participate in the World Grand Prix this year, so its most recent competition was the Olympic Qualifier tournament in May. The Koreans' play at that event was sporadic, which is not unusual for this team. They finished in fourth with a 4-3 record and logged a great 3-1 upset win over Japan, but turned around and lost to Thailand the next night in five. Always ranked in the middle or bottom of the Olympic field, Korea lacks the power and consistency to contend with the top teams, but can be dangerous at times. In 2012, Korea beat No. 2 Brazil in three sets, but lost to Turkey in the very next match.

The team's captain, outside hitter Kim Yeon-Koung, carries most of the offensive load, but gets help from middle blocker Kim Hee Jin. Korea's lack of size hurts it offensively, but the team knows how to tool large blocks and get multiple attempts due to its coverage and ball control skills.

PREDICTION

The Korean women have a long history at the Olympics, so they know how to handle the big stage. There are 11 returning Olympians on the roster, so they should have no problem advancing out of the preliminary round. They'll beat Cameroon and Argentina, but the rematch against Japan will be a thriller. These teams match up very well. Japan will want revenge for the qualifier loss, so it will come out swinging. Should Korea beat Japan, it could come out of the pool in third place and make the medal round depending on its draw. But if the team loses to Japan and comes out fourth in the pool, its Olympic run will end in the quarterfinal.