''Like Flowers in Sand'' () is a 2023–2024 South Korean television series starring

Jang Dong-yoon Jang Dong-yoon (born July 12, 1992) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his leading roles in the popular television series ''School 2017'' (2017), ''The Tale of Nokdu'' (2019), and ''Search'' (2020). Early life After finishing high ...

Lee Ju-myoung Lee Ju-myoung (; born December 1, 1993) is a South Korean actress and model. She debuted in the television and film industry with ''My Fellow Citizens!'' (2019) and is best known for her roles in '' Kairos'' (2020), '' Twenty-Five Twenty-One'' ...

, Yoon Jong-seok,

Kim Bo-ra Kim Bo-ra (Korean: 김보라, born September 28, 1995) is a South Korean actress. She gained recognition for her role in the hit drama ''Sky Castle'' (2018). She started her career as a child when she was in the film ''For Horowitz'' (2006), and ...

Lee Jae-joon Lee Jae-joon (born 20 October 1990) is a South Korean actor and model. Lee received favourable reviews for his first lead coming-of-age film '' Night Flight'' (2014) for which he was nominated Best New Actor at the 2nd Wildflower Film Awards a ...

, and

Lee Joo-seung Lee Joo-seung (, born July 20, 1989) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for starring in independent films, notably ''Shuttlecock'' (2014), and drama series such as ''Pinocchio'' (2014), '' The Producers'' (2015) and ''Happiness'' (2021 ...

. It follows the story of young people who are struggling to bloom in their lives against the backdrop of ''

ssireum ''Ssireum'' (Hangul: ) or Korean wrestling is a folk wrestling style and traditional national sport of Korea that began in the fourth century. In the modern form each contestant wears only a belt (satba) that wraps around the waist and the th ...

'' city of Geosan. It aired on

ENA Ena or ENA may refer to: Education * École nationale d'administration, French Grande école, for civil service * Education Networks of America, Internet service provider Fictional characters * Ena Sharples, from the British soap opera ''Coron ...

from December 20, 2023 to January 31, 2024, every Wednesday and Thursday at 21:00 ( KST). It is also available for

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

in selected regions.

Synopsis

Kim Baek-doo (

) is a ''

'' player considering to retire from the sport. However, his life takes a turn when he reunites with his childhood friend Oh Yoo-kyung (

), who becomes the management team leader for his ''ssireum'' team. The team is on the verge of disbanding, but with the help of people like Min Hyun-wook (Yoon Jong-seok) and Joo Mi-ran (

), as well as the new coach Kwak Jin-soo (

) and Baek-doo's best friend Jo Seok-hee (

), they work together to save the team.

Cast

Main

as Kim Baek-doo: a Taebaek-class player of the Geosan County Office Ssireum Team, which is on the verge of disbandment, who was called a prodigy because of his outstanding skills. *

as Oh Yoo-kyung / Oh Doo-sik : Baek-doo's first love who becomes the management team leader of the Geosan County Office Ssireum Team. * Yoon Jong-seok as Min Hyun-wook: a young man who has lived his whole life with plenty of everything. *

as Joo Mi-ran: a mysterious café owner. *

as Kwak Jin-soo: Baek-doo's long-time rival and a former ''ssireum'' wrestler. *

as Jo Seok-hee: Baek-doo's best friend and a police officer working at the Geosan Police Station.

Supporting

Choi Moo-sung Choi Myung-soo (born January 12, 1968), better known by his stage name Choi Moo-sung, is a South Korean actor. Filmography Film Television series Awards and nominations References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Choi, Moo-su ...

as Kim Tae-baek: Baek-doo's father who is a legendary ''ssireum'' star. *

Jang Young-nam Jang Young-nam (born November 25, 1973) is a South Korean actress. She began her career as an acclaimed actress in theater, then transitioned to supporting roles on television and film, notably in works by director Jang Jin. A member of Jang Jin ...

as Ma Jin-sook: Tae-baek's wife and Baek-doo's mother. *

Woo Hyun Woo Hyun (born 1964) is a South Korean actor, and former democracy activist. Filmography Film Television series Variety show References External links * Living people People from Gwangju South Korean male television actors So ...

as Park Pil-doo: an elder in the world of ''ssireum'' who runs a local '' sarangbang''. *

Hwang Seok-jeong Hwang Seok-jeong (born February 2, 1971) is a South Korean actress. She has mostly played supporting roles in films and television series, notably '' Secret Love'' (2013), '' Misaeng: Incomplete Life'' (2014) and ''She Was Pretty ''She Was P ...

as Lim Hyun-ja: Jin-soo's mother. *

Jang Hee-jung Jang Hee-jung is a South Korean actress. She is known for her roles in dramas such as ''Mistress'', ''Hospital Playlist'', ''Late Night Restaurant'', ''Voice 2'' and ''Three Bold Siblings ''Three Bold Siblings'' () is a 2023 South Korean tel ...

as Ahn Hyun-jin: Kyung-moon's wife who runs a mill with him in Geosan Market. * Ahn Chang-hwan as Lee Kyung-moon: one of the few non-''ssireum'' people in Geosan who is a quiet person. *

Seo Jeong-yeon Seo Jeong-yeon (born September 23, 1975) is a South Korean actress. She has starred in television series such as '' Righteous Love'' (2014) and '' Descendants of the Sun'' (2016), and had supporting roles in dramas including '' Something in the ...

as Chu Mi-sook: Yoo-kyung's role model who is a detective. * Yang Ki-won as Kim Geum-gang: Baek-doo's eldest brother. * Lee Yu-joon as Kim Han-ra: Baek-doo's second brother and a YouTuber who runs a personal channel for ''ssireum'' contents. *

Park Bo-kyung Park Bo-kyung is a South Korean actress. She is known for her roles in dramas such as ''Now, We Are Breaking Up'', '' Beyond Evil'', '' Link: Eat, Love, Kill'', and '' Little Women''. She also appeared in movies '' Hello, Schoolgirl'', '' Mr. XX ...

as Seo Sook-hee: a flower shop owner. * Lee Ho-chul as Jung Gil-soo: Sook-hee's husband. * Jo Sin-nae as Kang Jong-mi: a snack bar owner. * Hyun Jong-woo as Song Young-wook: Jong-mi's husband who is a fitness trainer. * Hwang Jae-yeol as Park Dong-chan: coach of the Geosan County Office Ssireum Team. * Kim Min-seok as Kim Beom-soo: the youngest member of the Geosan County Office Ssireum Team. * Park Kyung-seo as the youngest police officer at Geosan Police Station. * Yoon Don-seon as the team leader at Geosan Police Station. * Seo Jin-won as Ahn Ji-yong: a senior policeman at metropolitan investigation unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. * Kim Beop-rae as Hong Man-sik: the governor of Geosan County.

Production and release

Filming began soon after the script reading of the cast, which was held in May 2023. In June 2023, production company

AStory AStory () is a Korean drama production company founded in 2004 by Lee Sang-baek together with his friends, drama writer Choi Wan-kyu (최완규 (작가) and director , in Seoul. List of works As production company Scripted Non-scripted A ...

announced that it had signed a license supply contract with

for the overseas broadcasting rights of the series.

Viewership

Notes

References

External links

* * * * * {{Works by AStory 2023 South Korean television series debuts 2024 South Korean television series endings Coming-of-age television shows ENA television dramas Korean-language Netflix exclusive international distribution programming Korean-language television shows Ssireum South Korean romantic comedy television series South Korean sports television series Television series by AStory