Nam Sung-wook, a key player in the South Chungcheong Provincial Office handball team, expressed his strong will to advance to the playoffs ahead of the new season. Since joining Chungnam Provincial Office in 2015, he has become a veteran of the team and has always been the center of the team with his strong mid-range shot and solid defense. Nam Sung-wook is preparing for the season with even stronger determination towards his goal of ‘advancing to the playoffs’ in this Shinhan SOL Pay 24-25 Handball H League.
Nam Sung-wook started playing handball when he was in the 5th grade of elementary school at the recommendation of his physical education teacher. “The physical education teacher was the director of the handball team, and he asked a student who was running a bit to raise his hand. When I did, he told me to come to the gym,” he recalled with a smile, and from then on, he gradually became immersed in handball. In particular, he said that this choice brought about a big change as he improved his social skills and learned physical strength and self-management through handball.
Before joining Chungnam Provincial Office in 2015, Nam Seong-wook started his career as a player with the Welcome Loan Corosa team. However, when the team was disbanded, he temporarily gave up his career as a player and worked as a coach, and after receiving an offer from coach Kim Tae-hoon, he joined the Chungcheongnam-do Provincial Office. Since then, he has been active every year and has now become a symbolic figure of the South Chungcheong Provincial Office.
news/cms/202411/06/news-p.v1.20241106.748651ffd6164bdb929686b1ada7d805_R.jpg" data-width="600" data-height="400" /> South Chungcheong Provincial Office Nam Seong-wook posing for an enlarged photo, photo provided by Korea Handball Federation
Nam Sung-wook is the main offensive resource of South Chungcheong Province, scoring around 80 goals every season. In particular, he threatens the opponent’s goal with a powerful mid-range shot, and under the coach’s instructions, he has more opportunities to attempt mid-range shots and has further developed these abilities. “The coach prefers mid-range shots in attack, so I have many opportunities to do so,” he said, expressing his ambition to contribute to the team with powerful shots this season as well.
However, Nam Sung-wook’s true weapon is the defense he leads. South Chungcheong Province has a unique defensive style called ‘swamp handball’ that slowly pressures the opponent. “Our team’s strength is to focus on defense, trap the opponent in our swamp, and then launch a counterattack,” he explained, adding that this style has become the color of the team, and that he wants to be perceived as a “scary team” by opposing teams.
Nam Sung-wook, who has established himself as a strong center of the South Chungcheong Provincial Office, values the harmony between defense and attack. Regarding the team’s performance in the second half of last season, he said, “The defense was good in the beginning, and the offense improved in the second half. “If defense and offense had been carried out well at the same time, we would have had better results,” he said, expressing his disappointment. However, this experience instilled great confidence in the players, and as they won the National Sports Festival last October, it was expected that they would be able to develop further based on that confidence this season.
Nam Sung-wook chose Incheon City Corporation’s Jeong Soo-young and Doosan’s Jeong Eui-kyung, who are considered the best players in Korea, as role models. “Sooyoung Jeong and Jeong Eui-kyung have maintained their best skills for a long time and are setting an example for their juniors,” he said. “I also want to show my juniors a good performance and maintain their good skills for a long time.”
news/cms/202411/06/news-p.v1.20241106.2b7689920ede4b48b048f7dd73ed720d_R.jpg" data-width="600" data-height="400" /> Enlarged photo Shinhan SOL Pay 23-24 Handball H-League Nam Seong-wook, South Chungcheong Province Provincial Office, photo provided by Korea Handball Federation
Nam Sung-wook gave a positive evaluation of the Shinhan SOL Pay H League, which was newly launched from the 2023-24 season. He expressed satisfaction with this change in the league, which has strengthened communication with fans, saying, “The audience has increased and interest has increased, so we have more fun playing in the stadium.” In addition, he emphasized that in order for handball to receive more attention, support for not only spectators but also players needs to be strengthened.
He cited ‘advance to the playoffs’ as his goal for this season and said that he would like to reward fans with good results by surpassing last season, when South Chungcheong Province was ranked at the bottom. “This season, with some luck, I want to advance to the playoffs. “I want to create the perception that we are always a scary team, even if we are ranked low,” he said, showing his strong determination. Additionally, he added that personally, he is currently scoring 606 goals and would like to achieve his 700th goal.
Chungcheongnam-do Provincial Office always trains with a focus on defense, and this season also made efforts to improve the goal-scoring ability of offense and defense. Nam Sung-wook pledged to show sharper attacks by strengthening his goal-making ability, especially through no-mark shooting practice. He also delivered a message of trust and support to his teammates, saying, “We have done well enough, so let’s be confident and stick to our roles.”
Nam Seong-wook is responsible for Chungnam Provincial Office’s defense and mid-range shots every season, showing his passion for handball and dedication to the team. Fans’ expectations are growing as to whether the South Chungcheong Provincial Office led by him will be able to challenge for greater heights this season.
Seongwook Nam’s profile
1988. 11. 28.
Seonsan Elementary School – Seonsan Middle School – Seonsan High School – Chosun University
2013-14 Championship Game
2014-15 Championship Game
A total of 606 goals (4th in history to score 600 goals)
[김용필 MK스포츠 기자]
