Lee Won-hee (; born 19 July 1981) is a South Korean quadruple judo champion. Lee won the gold medal in the men's lightweight division at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

in Athens, Greece. He was the

world champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. He also won the gold medal in

2006 Asian Games The 2006 Asian Games (), officially known as the XV Asiad or 15th Asian Games (, and commonly known as Doha 2006 (), were an Asian multi-sport event held in Doha, Qatar, from December 1 to 15, 2006, with 424 events in 39 sports featured in the ga ...

and 2003 Asian Judo Championships. He won his Olympic gold medal by way of

Ippon is the highest score a fighter can achieve in a Japanese martial arts ''ippon-wazari'' contest, usually kendo, judo, karate or jujitsu. In judo In judo, an ''ippon'' may be scored for a throw, a pin, a choke or a jointlock. For throws, the ...

against Vitaly Makarov of Russia with 9 seconds left. He was leading in the bout anyway, but had secured the win when he went in for Drop

Seoi Nage is a throw in judo. It is one of the traditional forty throws of judo as developed by Jigoro Kano. It belongs to the first group, Dai Ikkyo, of the traditional throwing list, Gokyo (no waza), of Kodokan Judo. It is also part of the current of ...

and combined it with Kouchi gari to deliver Makarov onto his back with force. He was voted top judoka in the

2004 Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

. Lee was renowned for his favourite technique

Tai Otoshi , is one of the original 40 throws of Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書� ...

. Lee is arguably one of the best South Korean judokas ever to live. During his active career, he was nicknamed "Mr. Ippon" and "Grand Slammer" for his 48-game winning streak, of which, 43 were won by ippon. He lost to Wang Ki-chun in the qualifications for the 2007 World Championships in Rio de Janeiro and 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Lee taught judo at his alma mater

Yong In University Yong In University is a private university located in Samga-dong, Cheoin-gu, Yongin, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. Founded as a judo school, it expanded to the present-day comprehensive private university offering both undergraduate and ...

. In 2015, he was promoted to head coach of the South Korean Women's Judo National Team.

Personal life

Lee attended Boseong Middle School. He is believed to have an IQ of 148. In 2008, Lee married golfer

Kim Mi-hyun Mi-Hyun Kim (, born 13 January 1977) is a professional golfer from South Korea. She turned professional in 1996 and won 11 events on the LPGA of Korea Tour (KLPGA) between 1996 and 2000. In 1999, she joined the LPGA Tour and was named was Rooki ...

, and they have a son, Yeseong. The couple divorced in 2012. In 2018, Lee married South Korean table tennis player Yun Ji-Hye and have a daughter together.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Won-hee Judoka at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic judoka for South Korea Olympic gold medalists for South Korea Yong In University alumni 1981 births Living people Martial artists from Seoul Olympic medalists in judo Asian Games gold medalists in judo World judo champions Judoka at the 2006 Asian Games South Korean male judoka Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Asian Games gold medalists for South Korea Asian Games judoka for South Korea Medalists at the 2006 Asian Games Summer World University Games medalists in judo FISU World University Games gold medalists for South Korea 21st-century South Korean sportsmen