WRESTLERS from South Korea

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary South Korean Wrestlers of all time. This list of famous South Korean Wrestlers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of South Korean Wrestlers.

1. Ahn Byeong-keun (b. 1962)

With an HPI of 41.10, Ahn Byeong-keun is the most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages on wikipedia.

Ahn Byeong-keun (born in Daegu, 23 February 1962) is a retired judoka from South Korea, who represented South Korea at the 1984 Summer Olympics. There he claimed the gold medal in the men's lightweight division (‍–‍71 kg) by defeating Italy's Ezio Gamba in the final. Ahn participated at the 1992 Summer Olympics as a coach.

2. Yang Jung-mo (b. 1953)

With an HPI of 40.46, Yang Jung-mo is the 2nd most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Yang Jung-Mo (Korean: 양정모; Hanja: 梁正模; born January 22, 1953, in Busan) is a retired South Korean Olympic freestyle wrestler and the first Olympic champion from South Korea. He received a gold medal in the featherweight division of wrestling at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.

3. Lee Kyung-keun (b. 1962)

With an HPI of 39.47, Lee Kyung-keun is the 3rd most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Lee Kyung-Keun (born 7 November 1962) is a South Korean retired judoka. Lee was a runner-up in the half-lightweight (65 kg) division at the 1985 World Judo Championships. Three years later, at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Lee won an Olympic gold medal in the half-lightweight (65 kg) division.

4. Ha Hyung-joo (b. 1962)

With an HPI of 37.35, Ha Hyung-joo is the 4th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Ha Hyung-joo (born 3 June 1962), also known by Ha Hyoung-zoo, is a retired judoka from South Korea. In 1981, he became the first open division champion to represent South Korea at the Asian Judo Championships in Jakarta. Ha represented South Korea at the 1984 Summer Olympics, and claimed the gold medal in the men's half heavyweight division (‍–‍95 kg) by defeating Brazil's Douglas Vieira in the final. Ha also competed at the 1988 Summer Olympics, but did not win a medal. Ha retired shortly after the Seoul Olympics and has been working as a physical education professor at Dong-A University.

5. Park Jang-soon (b. 1968)

With an HPI of 37.35, Park Jang-soon is the 5th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Park Jang-Soon (Korean: 박장순; Hanja: 朴章洵; RR: Bak Jang-sun; born April 10, 1968) is a retired South Korean freestyle wrestler, world champion and Olympic champion.

6. Jeon Ki-young (b. 1973)

With an HPI of 36.13, Jeon Ki-young is the 6th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Jeon Ki-young (Korean: 전기영, born 11 July 1973 in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province) is a retired judoka who competed in the ‍–‍78 kg and ‍–‍86 kg divisions. Jeon has won three consecutive world championships (1993, 1995 & 1997), twice beating the Hidehiko Yoshida in dramatic fashion in the finals. He has also won six world cup titles. The crowning moment in Jeon's judo career came in winning the gold medal in the men's middleweight division at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, U.S. He defeated Armen Bagdasarov of Uzbekistan in the final match by ippon. In his march to the gold, Jeon won every match by ippon, except the 1st round match against the Dutch judoka Mark Huizinga, who would go on to dominate the weight once Jeon himself retired. Jeon retired from competition at a relatively young age of 25 in 1999, citing both knee injuries and an absence of motivation due to lack of competition. He retired undefeated in both Olympic and world championship competition. In 2003, PRIDE FC and Antonio Inoki tried to sign Jeon to fight Yoshida under MMA rules (using the fact that Jeon have never lost against Yoshida in judo) but Jeon refused offers.

7. Cho Min-sun (b. 1972)

With an HPI of 34.59, Cho Min-sun is the 7th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Cho Min-sun (born 21 March 1972) is a South Korean judoka. Cho won a gold medal in the middleweight division at the 1996 Summer Olympics and a bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics, and also won two gold medals at the 1993 and 1995 World Championships. Cho also won a bronze medal in the -48 kg division at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, where women's judo was held as a demonstration sport. Cho is the only South Korean judoka to win national championships in five different judo divisions: from 48 to 66 kg. She is currently a full professor at Korea National Sport University in Seoul.

8. Sim Kwon-ho (b. 1972)

With an HPI of 34.40, Sim Kwon-ho is the 8th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Sim Kwon-Ho (Korean: 심권호; Hanja: 沈權虎; born October 10, 1972, in Seongnam, South Korea) is a retired South Korean Greco Roman wrestler. He won gold medals at the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games, and is the only South Korean wrestler to win two gold medals in the Olympics.

9. Lee Won-hee (b. 1981)

With an HPI of 33.55, Lee Won-hee is the 9th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Lee Won-hee (Korean: 이원희; 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 in Athens, Greece. He was the world champion in 2003. He also won the gold medal in 2006 Asian Games and 2003 Asian Judo Championships. He won his Olympic gold medal by way of Ippon 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 and combined it with Kouchi gari to deliver Makarov onto his back with force. He was voted top judoka in the 2004 Olympics. Lee was renowned for his favourite technique Tai Otoshi. 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. In 2015, he was promoted to head coach of the South Korean Women's Judo National Team.

10. Kim Mi-jung (b. 1971)

With an HPI of 32.44, Kim Mi-jung is the 10th most famous South Korean Wrestler.  Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Kim Mi-Jung (born 29 March 1971 in Masan, Gyeongsangnam-do) is a female South Korean retired judoka.