Cha Min Kyu
Republic of Korea
| Sport | Speed Skating | |
| FederationID | SSKOR11603199301 | |
| NOC | Republic of Korea | |
| Born | 16 Mar 1993
in  Seoul | |
| Gender | Men |
| Occupation | Athlete, Office Worker | |
| Languages | Korean | |
| Higher education | Physical Education - Korea National Sport University: Seoul, KOR | |
| Residence | Seoul, KOR |
| Personal Bests | Event | Record | Date | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Personal Bests | ||||||
| Event | Record | Date | Location | |||
| 500m | 34.03 | 10 Mar 2019 |  Salt Lake City, UT |
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| 1000m | 1:07.32 | 12 Dec 2021 |  Calgary |
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| 1500m | 1:51.33 | 10 Sep 2016 | Calgary |
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| Main Achievements | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Main Achievements |
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| Olympic Games | Event | |||||
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Olympic Games
|
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| 500m | 2 | |||||
| World Single Distances Championships | Event | |||||
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World Single Distances Championships
|
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| Team Sprint | 1 | |||||
| World Sprint Championships | Event | |||||
|
World Sprint Championships
|
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| Overall | 1 | |||||
Sport Specific Information
Sport Specific Information
| Reason for choosing this sport | He got involved in the sport as a hobby. | |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | He began skating at age 10 at Anyang Sports Complex in the Republic of Korea. He initially took up short track before switching to speed skating in 2011. |
General Interest
General Interest
| Injuries | In 2021 he sustained an injury to his pelvis. (woman.donga.com, 02 Apr 2022; kookje.co.kr, 13 Feb 2022) He tore a ligament in his right ankle in 2013. The injury meant he missed the 2013 National Selection Trials for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, and he required a one-year rehabilitation period. (Athlete, 09 Feb 2023; mbn.co.kr, 06 Apr 2022; sportsseoul.com, 29 Mar 2018; vogue.co.kr, 28 Mar 2018) |
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| Most influential person in career | His parents. (woman.donga.com, 02 Apr 2022) | |
| Ambitions | To win gold at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan-Cortina. (Athlete, 09 Feb 2023) | |
| Nicknames | Cha-Syong ['Syong' is an onomatopoeic word that his teammates use to describe him skating fast], Ildan Fairy ['Ildan' means 'first of all' in English, and his fans gave him the nickname after noticing he uses the phrase regularly]. (woman.donga.com, 02 Apr 2022; vogue.co.kr, 28 Mar 2018) | |
| Sporting philosophy / motto | "Lead a life of virtue." (Athlete, 17 Nov 2018) | |
| Hero / Idol | Russian short track skater Victor An. (Athlete, 09 Feb 2023) | |
| Awards and honours | He was flag bearer for the Republic of Korea at the closing ceremony of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. (sports.hankooki.com, 20 Feb 2022) |
Sport Specific Information
Sport Specific Information
| Club / Team | Dongducheon City Hall : Republic of Korea |
General Interest
General Interest
| Memorable sporting achievement | Winning silver in the 500m at the Olympic Winter Games in 2018 and 2022. (Athlete, 09 Feb 2023) | |
| Other sports | He competed in short track at high school level. (Athlete, 09 Feb 2023; newsis.com, 19 Feb 2018) |
Sport Specific Information
Sport Specific Information
| Name of coach | Lee In-Sik [club], KOR |
| Championships results | Year | Competition | Event | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Championships results
|
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| 2019/2020 | Four Continents Championships | Team Sprint | 1 | |||
| 2021/2022 | Four Continents Championships | 500m | 2 | |||
| 2018/2019 | World Single Distances Championships | Team Sprint | 2 | |||
| 2022 | Olympic Games | 500m | 2 | |||
| 2018 | Olympic Games | 500m | 2 | |||
| 2021/2022 | Four Continents Championships | Team Sprint | 2 | |||
| 2019/2020 | World Sprint Championships | Overall | 3 | |||
| 2018/2019 | World Single Distances Championships | 500m | 4 | |||
| 2019/2020 | World Single Distances Championships | 500m | 7 | |||
| 2017/2018 | World Sprint Championships | Overall | 11 | |||
| 2018 | Olympic Games | 1000m | 12 | |||
| 2016/2017 | World Single Distances Championships | 500m | 12 | |||
| 2022/2023 | World Single Distances Championships | 500m | 15 | |||
| 2022 | Olympic Games | 1000m | 18 | |||
| World Cups | Year | Competition | Event | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
World Cups
|
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| 2017/2018 | Calgary, AB | 500m | 2 | |||
| 2018/2019 | Salt Lake City, UT | 500m | 2 | |||
| 2016/2017 | Nagano | 500m | 3 | |||
| 2018/2019 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 6 | |||
| 2022/2023 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 13 | |||
| 2019/2020 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 15 | |||
| 2021/2022 | World Cup Classification | 1000m | 17 | |||
| 2017/2018 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 17 | |||
| 2016/2017 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 18 | |||
| 2021/2022 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 19 | |||
| 2023/2024 | World Cup Classification | 500m | 21 | |||
| 2016/2017 | World Cup Classification | 1000m | 22 | |||
| 2018/2019 | World Cup Classification | 1000m | 27 | |||
| 2017/2018 | World Cup Classification | Overall | 35 | |||
| 2016/2017 | World Cup Classification | Overall | 40 | |||
| 2019/2020 | World Cup Classification | 1000m | 51 | |||
| 2023/2024 | World Cup Classification | 1000m | 55 | |||