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"Volleyball Empress" Kim Yeon-kyung (36) also reacted to the news of Korean Monster Ryu Hyun-jin (37) returning to Korea.

Kim scored 18 points against Pepper Savings Bank in the last match of the fifth round of the Dodram 2023-2024 V-League held at Samsan Gymnasium in Incheon on Tuesday, leading his team to a fifth-round victory. With the victory, Heungkuk Life Insurance regained its No. 1 position in the league.

After the game, Kim Yeon-kyung said, "It's a win-win, but I'm happy to be in the lead," adding, "I'll do my best in the next six games." He added, "I thought it wouldn't be easy because there was an eight-point gap (with Hyundai Engineering & Construction) before the fifth round, but I think I prepared well during the All-Star break."

There was a big issue in the sports world on the day. Ryu Hyun-jin, who played in the U.S. Major League Baseball for 11 years, has agreed to return to his pro baseball team Hanwha Eagles after ending his overseas career.

According to the baseball community on Tuesday, Ryu has agreed to sign a contract with the Hanwha Eagles. The Hanwha Eagles reportedly requested the MLB Secretariat to check Ryu's status through the Korea Baseball Organization. This is likely to be the final stage of the recruitment process.

After dominating the domestic league as a rookie and spending his best days abroad, he returned to his old team. The person who knows this feeling the best in the volleyball world is Kim Yeon-koung.

Kim Yeon-koung was also aware of Ryu's news. "There are so many similarities," Kim said.

First of all, it's me. "My understanding is that we are the same age," Kim said. In fact, Kim was born in February 1988 and Ryu was born in March 1987. When she heard the news, she said, "I was born in 1988 at the earliest."

They also beat the domestic league in their debut season. As soon as she debuted in the 2005-2006 season, she won six gold medals including scoring, offensive, serve, rookie of the year, MVP of the regular league, and MVP of the championship game.

Ryu also set a milestone in his debut season. Making his first debut as a pro in 2006, Ryu ranked first in all games with 18 wins, 2.23 ERA and 204 strikeouts, achieving the Triple Crown. He also won Rookie of the Year, MVP, and Golden Glove. He became the first rookie of the year and MVP in the KBO league.

The two players also played overseas for a similar period of time. Kim started living overseas in 2009. Kim returned to Korea in 2020 and then went to China again, before making a final comeback in 2022. During this period, Kim spent her heyday as a player in Japanese, Turkish and Chinese leagues. After the 2012 season ended, Ryu posted a private competitive bid to join the MLB. He started his career in the U.S. in 2013 and will make a final comeback this year in 12 years.

Another thing Kim and Ryu have in common is that they have returned to the friendly team. "It wasn't an easy decision," Kim said. "Hanwha is a team that has been at the bottom of the list recently, but before I returned, Heungkuk Life did not do well either. I had to come back and show my performance, but I definitely felt pressured."

"I'm satisfied," Kim said, expressing satisfaction at the fact that she returned to the team with high expectations from fans. "I think I was okay with the performance as well," she recalled.

He also gave words of blessing to Ryu. "I remember enjoying the game between Ryu Hyun-jin and Shohei Ohtani in the U.S. in the past," Kim said. "There will be a lot of pressure (on returning to Korea), but I hope you overcome such pressure and prepare well for this season."

You've made your point quite nicely!!

Thanks a lot. Plenty of advice!