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`My son`s winning goal helped ethnic Koreans in Japan`

Posted February. 02, 2011 11:00,   

한국어

Keikyu Aburatsubo Marine Park, an aquarium located in the southern part of the Miura Peninsula in Kanagawa, Japan, started a unique event Tuesday to celebrate Japan`s win in the Asian Cup soccer finals.

The event allowed free admission to the aquarium by people who have "Ri" or "Lee" in their names to honor Tadanari Lee, who scored the winning goal against Australia in the tournament final.

In Japanese, Ri (or Lee) is a surname while Tada means "free" and Nari means "become" or "gain." Lee is a fourth-generation Korean Japanese and his Korean name is Lee Chung-sung.

In an interview with The Dong-A Ilbo Tuesday at Nishitokyo, Lee`s father Lee Chul-tae said, "I slept just five hours over the past three days following Japan`s victory due to hundreds of congratulatory phone calls. It felt like a tsunami."

"Many in Japan are still unaware of why ethnic Koreans live there. Negative sentiment prevails in Japan on ethnic Koreans because they`re considered poor and violent. I`m happy that my son contributed to breaking down such prejudice."

Ethnic Koreans in Japan are like dandelions on streets, he said, in that due to a vague ethnic identity, they have to work harder and stand out to survive in Japanese society.

The elder Lee said he constantly told his son from childhood to make himself proficient and never complain about discrimination.

The father urged understanding on his son gaining Japanese citizenship in 2007 and playing for Japan since the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

"My son plays for the Japanese national team but still uses his Korean surname Lee. All he wished for was a chance to be good soccer player," he said.

"German internationals Miroslav Klose, Lukas Podolski and Bastian Schweinsteiger are of Polish descent. I hope people view my son as an ethnic Korean in Japan before criticizing him."



changkim@donga.com