[주간트롯] 좌절 넘어 거듭된 도전…홍지윤 ‘현역가왕3’ 우승으로 결실

Two Major Trot Competition Shows Conclude Their Battle

The rivalry between two popular singing competition programs wrapped up in early March after starting their runs the previous December. One show achieved a peak rating of 18.1%, while the other reached 12.7%. Although the gap narrowed to just 1.7 percentage points at one stage, the final difference in peak viewership stood at 5.4 points.

During the semifinal and final rounds, one program experienced rising viewership while the other plateaued, causing the gap to widen. In the finale episode alone, the difference reached 6.4 percentage points.

Championship Results Announced

Hong Ji-yun emerged victorious in her competition, with Cha Ji-yeon taking second place and Lee Su-yeon claiming third. The championship unfolded across two stages, with the first round determining which contestants would advance directly to the finals.

In the initial round, Hong Ji-yun secured first place, followed by Cha Ji-yeon and Koo Su-kyung. A tie for seventh place between two performers meant eight contestants advanced instead of seven, with only one participant eliminated at this stage.

The final round scoring system was comprehensive:
• Combined finals score (2,400 points)
• Real-time text voting (1,200 points)
• Public support voting (240 points)
• New song streaming score (160 points)
Total possible: 4,000 points

Hong Ji-yun entered the final round as the favorite, having topped the first round with 1,040 points and leading in public support. Though she placed fourth in the celebrity panel scoring during round two with 1,097 points, her combined score of 2,137 points secured first place overall.

Cha Ji-yeon earned the highest celebrity panel score in round two (1,122 points) but finished second overall with 2,131 combined points. Only four contestants exceeded 2,000 points in the combined finals category.

Perfect Scores Seal Victory

Hong Ji-yun achieved maximum points in both real-time text voting and public support voting. She had dominated the public support rankings for seven consecutive weeks and maintained her lead through the finale broadcast voting. Her only non-first-place finish was third in the new song streaming category.

With a total of 3,727 points, Hong Ji-yun claimed the championship. Cha Ji-yeon finished second with 3,402.22 points, performing consistently across the heavily-weighted categories despite ranking eighth in both public support and streaming scores.

Lee Su-yeon climbed to third place overall with 3,280.79 points, despite a modest first-round showing of 755 points. Her strong second-round performance (1,101 points) and second-place finish in real-time voting propelled her past other competitors.

Previous Competition Veterans Return

Three of the nine finalists had previously competed in another major singing competition. Hong Ji-yun, who had finished second in that earlier show, finally achieved championship status. Two other returnees placed fifth and sixth respectively in this competition.

Hong Ji-yun’s Journey Through Setbacks:

From childhood, she pursued traditional music, gaining admission to a prestigious arts university. However, vocal cord issues forced her to abandon that path. She then trained as an idol group member, showing promise during practice but suffering a leg injury at a crucial moment that ended that dream as well.

Her return to competition singing resulted in a second-place finish, after which she remained active as a performer. Setting her sights on championship glory, she entered another competition and finally achieved her goal.

At a press conference following her victory, Hong Ji-yun revealed that a fan battling cancer had voted for her until the very end before passing away just before the finals. This inspired her to compete, hoping to bring comfort to those facing difficulties through her performances.

She announced plans to donate her entire prize of 100 million won, fulfilling a commitment she had made during earlier rounds of competition—describing it as completing unfinished business.