Currently, recordings of the South Korean Olympic athlete Kim Ye-ji are circulating on X, formerly Twitter. Users are thrilled by the stylish shooter, who could well have sprung from an action movie or video game.
Who is it about? Kim Ye-ji is a South Korean sports shooter currently participating in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. On July 28, she won a silver medal in the “Women’s 10m Air Pistol” category. She holds a world record at 25 m – and possibly also in terms of coolness.
Many users on social media are currently raving about the 31-year-old.
“Main Character Energy” has also been noted by Rebecca Ford, the head of Warframe:
Compared to this, John Wick looks lame
What’s behind the hype? Users of social networks are excited about the athlete’s posture, movements, and facial expressions. A video showing her at the ISSF World Cup 2024 has been viewed over 36 million times. You can watch it here:
Under this and numerous other similar posts, users compare Kim Ye-ji to a main character in a film or video game.
- “Why do I feel like I’ve seen an anime scene?” (via X)
- “Her aura is DEADLY” (via X)
- “The most ‘Main Character Energy’ I’ve ever seen in my entire life.” (via X)
Even Elon Musk is impressed: “She should be cast in an action movie. No acting needed!” (via X)
Some even joke that they wouldn’t mind being targeted by a shooter like her. Others see the athlete as a playable heroine in a shooter like Valorant (via X) or as the protagonist in the next Final Fantasy (via X).
Another viral post is already predicting that Kim Ye-ji will be contacted by the legendary Japanese game designer Hideo Kojima, who is known for making celebrities into video game characters.
That the athlete is not only cool but also has a sensitive side is shown in recordings from the Olympics: Because there, she apparently carries a stuffed animal from her daughter with her while winning silver at the shooting range:
For many new fans of Kim Ye-ji, these images are likely bittersweet, as the athlete has received several marriage proposals on X, formerly Twitter, in recent days. Others, however, find her even cooler: Attractive, cool, and a loving mother – that’s probably just the complete package.
While the athletic world of athletes and the nerdy world of gaming and anime fans once seemed to be very far apart, these topics have become an integral part of pop culture, and there appear to be more and more touchpoints: A professional athlete loves GTA so much that he immortalized his favorite cheat
