The culminations of four years of preparations and training bring out a wide range of emotions. At handball we are now a game away from awarding the gold medal.  Norway and Russia will be vying for the prize.  Behind them the two teams have left ten others who have walked of the court defeated, but not without controversy.

Waiting in the mixed zone to do an interview, I expect one team in tears and the other in absolute joy. It is very cool to witness the opposite reactions simultaneously.  It has become common place and I have learned to deal with both the winners and the losers. I greet the winners with a wide smile and a loud “congratulations,” the losers receive my straight face and a somber toned, “how disappointed are you right now” (like I really have to ask when the person I’m interviewing is balling her eyes out).

Then yesterday controversy struck and I got different kind of reaction from team Korea.  I had left the press tribune with two minutes left and Korea losing to Norway by three goals in the semifinal match.  I got to the mixed zone just in time to see the score change on the TV to from “27-28” to“28-28,” I didn’t even see the goal being scored.  I did see, seconds later, Norway score the game winning goal with no time left.  After the entire team finished dancing in a circle together Norway’s players ran of the court.  Korea went nowhere.  The head coach was talking with referees and officials, the players all sat together on the sideline.  The assistant coaches were all on their cell phones.  I stood in the mixed zone, waiting and waiting and waiting.  Eventually, the head coach left the court with some Olympic officials.  After coming back minutes later he spoke to his team, and then headed towards me with a grey haired Korean man in front of him.  The players came first and didn’t stop in the mixed zone.  They were upset but not defeated, just confused.  They ignored me and the rest reporters packing into the mixed zone trying to figure out what was going.  Next the grey haired man walked into the zone and spoke in Korean.  I dispatched the Korean translator I was working with.  “Forget about any of my questions,” I said, “write down everything he says in Chinese, we’ll translate it later.” Shortly after the grey haired left the head coach came in.  “Same thing,” I said to the translator.  As we left he mixed zone all the Norwegian reporters were hounding us.  “What did he say? Can anyone translate what the coach said!?”  I grabbed my translator and told him to follow me to the ONS office, “We have to impute it,” I explained, “they can all read what the coach said on INFO when were done.”

Turns out the Korea was protesting the last goal by Norway.  To paraphrase what the coach and the grey haired man (who was the vice president of Korean Handball) said - the goal was scored two seconds after time was up.  The assistant coaches were on their cells with Korean TV stations who were replaying the goal.  The coach asked to see a replay but officials told him he was not allowed.  He could prepare a document and file an appeal within nine hours, which is what Korea did.  The coach claimed the referee even admitted he wasn’t sure if Norway scored in time because the crowd was so loud he couldn’t hear the buzzer. Making things more complicated Korea handball has a history of being treated unfairly and has actually had matches replayed before. 

Apparently the appeal will do no good in the Olympics though, because if it was ruled the game should go into overtime than the Norwegians will fill a counter appeal.  There is no way the whole thing could be put to rest before the gold medal match is played tomorrow.

It’s an interesting situation I found myself covering.  No offense the Koreans (they happened to be my favorite team, I picked them to win it all the first time I saw them play) but it was the most exciting day at handball yet.  When I left the stadium at 11pm the IOC was having a meeting to determine what to do.  I’ll find out what they decide when I go back in tomorrow.  With little hope, I’m crossing my figures for Korea.