South Korean · Seoul, South Korea · Born 25 February 1989South Korean speed skater and the fastest woman in 500m history, who became the first Asian woman to win Olympic speed skating gold and defended her title four years later.
Lee Sang-hwa was born on 25 February 1989 in Seoul, South Korea, and began skating in first grade after her older brother's success at the sport caught her attention, though her family could only afford to support one child's skating career and she quickly showed more natural talent. She competed internationally from age 14, and made her Olympic debut at the 2006 Turin Games, finishing fifth in the 500m as a 16-year-old. Lee's breakthrough came at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, where she edged Germany's world-record holder Jenny Wolf by just 0.05 seconds across two runs to win 500m gold, becoming the first Asian woman ever to win an Olympic speed skating title. She then entered a dominant stretch, breaking the 500m world record three times in eight days in November 2013, eventually setting the mark at 36.36 seconds that would stand for over a decade. At the 2014 Sochi Olympics, she defended her Olympic title with an Olympic-record time of 74.70 seconds, becoming the first woman since Canada's Catriona Le May Doan to win back-to-back 500m golds and the first Asian woman to do so. Competing at her home Olympics at Pyeongchang 2018, Lee won silver behind Japan's Nao Kodaira, her third Olympic medal, in a race that produced one of the Games' most memorable moments of sportsmanship: overcome with emotion during her celebratory lap, she was consoled and embraced by Kodaira, her fierce rival and close friend. Lee retired in May 2019, having also won three World Championship 500m titles, and has since worked as a sports commentator and appeared on South Korean television, marrying entertainer Kangnam in 2019.
Becoming the first Asian woman to win Olympic speed skating gold and defending her 500m title four years later, while setting the sport's longest-standing world record
How They Played
Explosive sprint specialist renowned for elite starting speed and technical precision purpose-built for the 500m distance
Lasting Impact
Regarded as the greatest female 500m sprinter in speed skating history, whose rivalry and close friendship with Japan's Nao Kodaira produced one of the Winter Olympics' most touching moments
Career Honours
- 2x Olympic Gold Medalist, 500m (2010, 2014)
- First Asian woman to win Olympic speed skating gold
- World record holder, 500m (36.36 seconds, set 2013)
- 3x World Champion, 500m; 2010 World Sprint Champion
South Korean Athletes