Rookie of the Year is a term that excites every athlete. Other awards can be pursued at any point during an athlete's career, but Rookie of the Year is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Currently, there are 17 generations of boat racing athletes, and the Rookie of the Year competition has been held 11 times. The first and second generations did not hold the competition as they were the settling period for boat racing, while the third generation held a queens' competition with only female athletes. The first Rookie of the Year competition was held in 2005 for the athletes of the fourth generation, and the inaugural Rookie of the Year title was won by the now-retired athlete Kyungsang Soo. Competitions for the ninth and tenth generations were not held due to a lack of participants, so currently, 10 Rookie of the Year titleholders continue their athlete careers. Among these, the athletes who consistently maintain high rankings include Lee Seung-il, Seo Hee, and Park Won-kyu.
▲ Athletes continuing to perform consistently since being named Rookie of the Year include Lee Seung-il, Seo Hee, and Park Won-kyu
First, Lee Seung-il (5th generation, B1), the Rookie of the Year in 2006, recorded nine wins in his first year and achieved over 10 wins each year until 2016, starting with 14 wins in 2007. During this period, he also recorded five wins, two second places, and two third places in the target boat racing competition, establishing himself as a key player of the fifth generation.
There was a slight slump from 2017 to 2019, but after COVID-19, he regained his form with 19 wins in 2022, 33 wins in 2023, and 19 wins in 2024. He has already achieved seven wins this year, with a first-course success rate of 67%, a second-course rate of 85%, and a three-course success rate of 100%. He is an athlete with a clear advantage in the inside course.
Next is Seo Hee (11th generation, B2), the Rookie of the Year in 2012. Known for her quick starts and powerful first-turn execution, Seo Hee has a total of 179 wins. She has particularly begun to excel since 2023, recording 32 wins that year and 28 wins last year. Although she has no experience placing in the target boat racing competition, she is scheduled to compete in the '2025 KBOAT Boat Racing Grand Championships' held on the 18th and 19th, and expectations are high for her strong performance.
Finally, there is Park Won-kyu (14th generation, B1), who is regarded as a promising talent to lead the next generation of boat racing, having been named Rookie of the Year in 2017.
In the 2017 Rookie of the Year competition, although he did not have a dominating start, he executed a stable race performance that was not typical for a rookie and began to make a name for himself by winning.
Park Won-kyu recorded 16 wins in his rookie debut in 2017, which was better than the 13 wins recorded by Sim Sang-cheol when he was a rookie in 2008. Therefore, experts at the time noted that there hadn’t been any outstanding rookies since Sim Sang-cheol, but after a decade, a player to follow in Sim Sang-cheol's footsteps has emerged.
Excluding the years 2020 and 2021, which saw fewer competitions due to COVID-19, he has recorded over 20 wins each year since 2019 and achieved 39 wins last year, including his first victory in a target race competition last August. This year, he has already secured 13 wins, with success rates in the first and second courses comparable to last year at 60%, although success rates in the fifth and sixth courses have dropped somewhat, indicating a need for adjustments.
Lee Seo-beom, a race analyst for the prediction site Boat Racing Korea, noted, "While Lee Seung-il, Seo Hee, and Park Won-kyu continue to excel after winning Rookie of the Year, there are many more athletes performing well who are not Rookie of the Year. Among the 17th generation, Jo Mi-hwa currently stands out the most, with the Rookie of the Year competition scheduled for July 17. It will be exciting to see which of the 10 athletes from the 17th generation will claim the 12th Rookie of the Year title."
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