Age, Biography and Wiki

Sohn Kee-chung was born on 29 August, 1912 in Shingishu, Heianhoku-dō, Korea, Empire of Japan (now Sinuiju, North Pyongan Province, North Korea), is a Korean marathon runner (1912–2002). Discover Sohn Kee-chung's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Learn How rich is he in this year and how he spends money? Also learn how he earned most of networth at the age of 90 years old?

Popular As N/A
Occupation N/A
Age 90 years old
Zodiac Sign Virgo
Born 29 August, 1912
Birthday 29 August
Birthplace Shingishu, Heianhoku-dō, Korea, Empire of Japan (now Sinuiju, North Pyongan Province, North Korea)
Date of death 15 November, 2002
Died Place Seoul, South Korea
Nationality North Korea

We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 29 August. He is a member of famous runner with the age 90 years old group.

Sohn Kee-chung Height, Weight & Measurements

At 90 years old, Sohn Kee-chung height is 1.70 m and Weight 60 kg.

Physical Status
Height 1.70 m
Weight 60 kg
Body Measurements Not Available
Eye Color Not Available
Hair Color Not Available

Dating & Relationship status

He is currently single. He is not dating anyone. We don't have much information about He's past relationship and any previous engaged. According to our Database, He has no children.

Family
Parents Not Available
Wife Not Available
Sibling Not Available
Children Not Available

Sohn Kee-chung Net Worth

His net worth has been growing significantly in 2023-2024. So, how much is Sohn Kee-chung worth at the age of 90 years old? Sohn Kee-chung’s income source is mostly from being a successful runner. He is from North Korea. We have estimated Sohn Kee-chung's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets.

Net Worth in 2024 $1 Million - $5 Million
Salary in 2024 Under Review
Net Worth in 2023 Pending
Salary in 2023 Under Review
House Not Available
Cars Not Available
Source of Income runner

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Timeline

1912

Sohn Kee-chung (손기정; ; August 29, 1912 – November 15, 2002) was an Olympic athlete and long-distance runner.

1933

Sohn first competed in the 1,500 and 5,000 m, but turned to longer distances after winning an eight-mile race in October 1933.

Between 1933 and 1936, he ran 12 marathons; he finished in the top three on all occasions and won nine.

1935

On November 3, 1935 in Tokyo, Japan, Sohn set a world record in the marathon with a time of 2:26:42, which broke the world record 2:26:44 set by Yasuo Ikenaka of Japan at the Berlin Olympic trials on April 3, 1935, in Tokyo, Japan.

Unofficially, he even ran a marathon with a time under 2:24 on April 27, 1935 in Seoul, South Korea.

1936

He became the first ethnic Korean to win a medal at the Olympic Games, winning gold in the marathon at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

He was born in the Korean Peninsula, but he competed as a member of the Japanese delegation because Korea was under Japanese rule at the time.

Sohn set an Olympic record of 2 hours 29 minutes 19.2 seconds.

Sohn competed under the Japanese name , as Korea, Empire of Japan was under occupancy rule of the Japanese Empire during his career.

Sohn Kee-chung was born in what is now Sinuiju (previously called Shingishū), North P'yŏngan Province, North Korea, which was ruled by Japan at the time.

He was born into the Miryang Son clan.

Sohn, competing for the Empire of Japan, won the gold medal at the 1936 Summer Olympics in the marathon.

He ran the 42.195 km course in 2:29:19.2, breaking the Olympic record.

His teammate Nam Sung-yong took the bronze medal.

As Korea was under Japanese rule at the time, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) officially credited Japan with Sohn's gold and Nam's bronze in the 1936 Summer Olympics medal count.

1940

He studied at Yangchung High School in Seoul and Meiji University in Tokyo, where he graduated in 1940.

1947

According to the International Association of Athletics Federations, the record remained unbroken until Sohn's own trainee, Suh Yun-bok, won the 1947 Boston Marathon.

Sohn spent the remainder of his career in South Korea coaching other notable runners such as Suh Yun-bok, the winner of the Boston Marathon in 1947; Ham Kee-yong, winner of the Boston Marathon in 1950; and Hwang Young-cho, who was the gold medalist of the 1992 Summer Olympics marathon, and whom Sohn Kee-chung especially went to Barcelona to see.

Sohn also became the Vice Chairman of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee.

1948

Sohn was the team manager for the Korea at the 1948 and 1952 Summer Olympics and was the nation's flag bearer in the London 1948 opening ceremony.

1986

It was finally presented to Sohn in 1986.

1988

At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, he was given the honor of carrying the Olympic torch in the stadium during the opening ceremony.

Sohn authored an autobiography entitled My Motherland and Marathon (나의조국과 마라톤).

He was honoured with the Moran Class of the Korean Order of Civil Merit.

1990

Sohn donated the helmet to the National Museum of Korea, which designated it as the 904th and only Western National Treasure.

2002

Sohn died at midnight on November 15, 2002, at age 90 from pneumonia.

2006

There was initially a plan to award replicas of this helmet to the winners of the 2006 Sohn Kee-chung marathon, but they eventually got only a chance to wear a replica.

2011

On December 9, 2011, the IOC recognized Sohn's Korean nationality in his official profile.

It cited his efforts to sign his Korean name and his stress on Korea's status as a separate nation during interviews.

The move was part of the Korean Olympic Committee's repeated requests to acknowledge Sohn's background.

However, the IOC ruled out changing the nationality and registered name per official records to prevent historical distortions.

Under orders from Tokyo, Sohn Kee-chung had to compete using the Latin alphabet name of.

It is the romanization of the Japanese pronunciation of his Korean name in hanja.

Sohn refused to acknowledge the Japanese anthem while it was played at his award ceremony and later told reporters that he was ashamed to run for Japan.

When the Dong-a Ilbo published a photograph of Sohn at the medal ceremony, it altered the image to remove the Japanese flag from his running tunic.

The act enraged the Japanese Governor-General of Korea Minami Jiro in Seoul.

The Kempetai military police imprisoned eight people connected with the newspaper and suspended its publication for nine months.

For winning the marathon, Sohn was to have received an ancient Corinthian helmet from the 8th century BC, which was discovered at Olympia, Greece, and later purchased by a newspaper in Athens to give as an Olympic award.

However, the IOC believed that presenting such a valuable gift to a runner would violate its amateur rules.

The helmet was placed in a Berlin museum and remained there for 50 years.