“I think that’s why we play together more.”
Born in 1985, Heo Il-young (SK) is now older than Ham Ji-hoon (Hyundai Mobis) in the KBL. But Heo’s clock is still ticking. At least for a few more years.
After the second practice game in Irvine, California, on July 15 (KST), Heo said, “After last season, (the veterans) left. I think I’m old, but I still think I’m competitive when I play. I think I can play for a few more years if I build my body well, but honestly, it’s hard. I guess I can’t help it. Recovery is definitely slower the next day. I’m tired even when I sleep. I try to eat well and rest as much as possible.”
Heo Il-young is a father of two. He has a 7-year-old son (Sung-hyuk) and a 6-year-old daughter (Tae-lin) who will soon be entering elementary school. He wants to be a basketball dad until they are both in elementary school.
Heo says, “My goal was to play until my kids go to elementary school. The oldest will go next year. I’m a free agent next year, but I’m greedy. I want to do it until the second one goes to elementary school.” He said, “That’s why I think I’m working harder. It’s really hard to get in shape. But I have a family, so I’m putting up with it,” he laughed.
He’s been working hard on his body. He’s currently at 16% body fat. While she was good at managing her weight at the Orion, she shed the fat when she moved to SK two years ago.
“From the first season, the coach talked about the team system, and body fat was one of them,” Heo says. He said he thought I wouldn’t keep my promise at first. I’m old, I’m a senior, and my first image is important, so I was determined to get rid of it. “Now I know how to keep it up,” he says, “because he gave me a gift. It’s hard to make it, but you have to fit in with the team.”
Coach Jeon Hee-chul brags about Heo Il-young’s abs whenever he gets a chance. He boasts that she has what he calls “royal” abs.
“In the past, I used to gain 3-4 kilograms during my vacation, but I made sure to get in shape for the season. I didn’t worry too much about the trainer part. At SK, body fat is more important than weight. I also control what I eat on vacation. On this vacation, I even came in at the right weight, and I’m still losing weight better than I thought. It’s just that I’m losing more.” “There was a ‘king’ in the first season, too. Last season it was much clearer. I have to trust the coach to play. Being lazy is also a minus for me. I don’t want to be excluded or discarded because I’m older, so I’m trying to build up my body more to show that I can do it.”
Heo captained SK for the 2023-2024 season. With so many veterans that the team was nicknamed the “Seniors,” head coach Jeon Hee-chul entrusted the captaincy to Heo Il-young instead of Choi Boo-kyung. With the addition of free agent Oh Se-geun, there are now six players above Choi.
Heo Il-young said, “It’s not my first time as captain, but I don’t mind it too much. I think I can just do what I’ve been doing because Bu Kyung-i has been doing a good job,” Heo said, adding, “(The veterans) all help each other well and talk a lot. As long as we stick to each other, I don’t think there will be any problems. I was captain of Orion for about three years,” he said.
SK has reached the championship final for two consecutive seasons since Heo’s arrival. This season, they are also strong favorites to win the title.온라인카지노
“I’ve been to the championship game two seasons in a row since I joined, and I want to make it three in a row. I want to have a good season without injuries, because teams without injuries always do well, so everyone needs to prepare well without injuries,” Heo said. “I think it’s going to be an interesting season because other teams are getting stronger. Se-geun-i is here, and (Ahn) Young-joon is leaving. Choi Jun-yong (KCC) and Choi Sung-won (Jung Kwan-jang) are gone, but if we can get along with the new members, we will do well. We are looking forward to this season more than ever,” he said.