Figure skating queen dates with ice hockey player

Kim Yu-na, 24, Korea’s favorite figure skating queen, is in love.

All That Sports, her management agency, said in a press release on Thursday, “Kim Yu-na is in relationship with Kim Won-joong, an ice hockey player.” An online entertainment media outlet released several pictures of Kim Yu-na dating with her boyfriend.

Her boyfriend is one of the members of the national ice hockey team and has served in the military since 2012.

○ Kim Yu-na falls in love

It was first rumored that she was seeing an ice hockey player two years ago. After a lull, the rumor spread again last year.

The two Korea University alumni got closer after Kim Yu-na declared her return in summer 2012. Since then, she had trained at the Taereung Indoor Ice Rink in Seoul.

Around that time, a military ice hockey team (Sangmu) was created. The team consisting of national team members used the Taereung Ice Rink for training because they did not have their own ice rink. Although the two people did not use the ice rink at the same time, they often ran into each other and got closer.

It is said that they went out together mostly when Kim Won-joong took a day off. One of their friends said, “They often dated at a Korean barbeque restaurant near the Taereung Ice Rink. They dated just like any other couples as they walk around the Han River.”

After the news was first reported Thursday, Kim Yu-na admitted her dating. A source from All That Sports said, “We issued a press release (admitting her dating) because there’s no need to hide it.”

○ Who is her boyfriend?

Kim Won-joong is an excellent forward of a national team with a good look. He is 5 feet 10 inches tall. A graduated from Gyeongbok High School and Korea University, he joined the Anyang Halla as a forward in 2006. He was more popular among Japanese fans than Korean fans and is known for a “handsome skater.”

A source from the Anyang Halla said, “He was not the top-tier player when he first joined the team. After endless efforts, he became the top. He is one of a few polite players who is beloved by both older and younger players.”

A source from Daemyeong Sangmu said, “He seems silent and picky but kind. He is very serious during training or competitions, but he is mischievous when he takes rest. He knows what he wants and often says what he wants to say without hesitation.”

He is an excellent player and is a forward of the first national team. He brought his team to victory by scoring five goals in Division 1 Group B of the 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in Poland. He helped his team move forward to the play-off match scoring 25 goals (eighth) and 24 assists in this season’s Asia League Ice Hockey. Daemyeong Sangmu will have the first play-off match with the Nippon Paper Cranes at Mokdong Ice Rink at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

It is believed that ice hockey players are from rich families, but Kim Won-joong has an ordinary family background. His father is an office worker and his sister works at a front desk of the Anyang Halla.