Iron Girls pulled off a feat just three months after starting boxing. Everyone was reborn as a goddess of victory.
On the 10th episode of tvN "Iron Girls 2" (directed by Bang Geul-yi), which aired on the 12th (Fri), Yui, Geum Sae-rok, Park Joo-hyun and Seol In-a all advanced to the finals in their first boxing tournament, thrilling viewers.
The episode's ratings recorded a nationwide household average of 2.6%, a peak of 4.0%, and a Seoul metropolitan household average of 2.6% with a peak of 4.3%, ranking first in its time slot among cable and general programming channels. The tvN target demographic rating for adults 20-49 ranked first in the same time slot across all channels in both nationwide and Seoul metropolitan measurements. (Based on paid platforms combining cable, IPTV and satellite / provided by Nielsen Korea)
Earlier, Iron Girls began special training at a boot camp in Phuket, Thailand, with former WBA bantamweight champion Shannon Courtney. They improved their boxing skills with jump rope, ladder steps, mitt work and technical sparring, and Seol In-a was selected as training MVP and received a signed glove from Shannon Courtney.
As the first tournament approached, Iron Girls continued heavy and intense training and struggled with weight cutting and weight gain to pass the weigh-in. Park Joo-hyun, who had to lose weight to make her weight class, did not apply moisturizing cream or body lotion on the day of the prelims, and all four passed the weigh-in and completed player registration without incident.
Meanwhile, an unexpected event occurred that sent Yui to the finals before she even stepped into the ring. Due to the opponent's disqualification at the weigh-in, Yui advanced to the final by walkover without fighting in the prelims, securing at least a silver medal.
Excluding Yui, the first-ever boxing matches for Seol In-a, Park Joo-hyun and Geum Sae-rok kept viewers on the edge of their seats. Seol In-a, who went out first for Iron Girls, landed crisp punches on an opponent with six years of special martial arts experience and delivered a powerful blow that earned a standing-down ruling, winning with a lion-like performance in the ring.
Next, "mad boxer" Park Joo-hyun faced an opponent with one year and six months of boxing experience and calmly finished the first round using her specialty of hit-and-move. In the second round her attacking instincts rose further, she ran across to the opposite side of the ring and landed as many as five effective blows, stimulating viewers' dopamine and enjoying the joy of victory. Commenting on the two competitors' performances, Kim Dong-hyun said, "People who used to turn their faces when hit changed this much in three months?" expressing astonishment.
If Geum Sae-rok also won, Iron Girls would all advance to the finals. Geum Sae-rok answered an opponent aiming for her body with a one-two, and even when cornered she attacked and moved out. After fierce checking, exchanges and body blows, Geum Sae-rok finished the match with a final effective hit and won. Proving their growth as boxers, they earned the valuable result of all advancing to the finals after working hard, which amplified the emotion.
The finals, which bring Yui, Geum Sae-rok, Park Joo-hyun and Seol In-a one step closer to the seemingly impossible boxing championship, can be seen on the next episode of tvN "Iron Girls 2," airing on the 19th (Fri) at 8:40 p.m.
[Photo] Capture, OSEN DB
[OSEN]