Choo Sung-hoon Opens Up About His Past and Identity in Inspiring Lecture
Nov 03, 2024
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In MBC 'Stirring Speakers (hereinafter referred to as Speakers)', which will be broadcast tonight (3rd), fighter Choo Sung-hoon will tell a special story of his judo life and his father, who has lived through identity confusion between Korea and Japan.
In a lecture, Chu Sung-hoon said, `The neighborhood where I lived as a child was a bad neighborhood in Osaka. And most of my friends in the neighborhood are yakuza. There were so many such friends, but there is a reason why they did not fall into a bad way when they were young. I have been judo since I was 3 years old with my father, a former judo player. Thanks to my father's teachings, I could not fall into a bad way. He also played as a judo player in middle and high school, but he was unable to enter a college where tuition was high due to difficulties in his family. When I looked up what to do, I heard that if you win first place in a judo tournament in Osaka province, you can get scouts and support your school expenses."
On why he worked hard for his future, Chu said, `I wanted to become a judo player for the Korean national team with the Korean national flag on his chest. It was my dream and my father's dream. After graduating from university, I went to the general business team, but I had to give up my Korean nationality to go to the Japanese business team. The Japanese judo team offered me a scout, and 35 years ago, I heard that my salary was 300,000 yen (about 3 million won). It was such a shaky suggestion for 24-year-old. I thought about it countless times and finally chose my dream. And I told my father that I would go to Korea."
Choo Sung-hoon unveiled the name tag with the uniform and Taegeuk mark for the first time on the show 30 years ago when he was a judo player, explaining the meaning of the Taegeuk mark he had with his father.
He talked about the importance of the spirit of challenge, conveying his father's teachings that "'choose a difficult path rather than an easy one.'" His sincere advice immersed the audience and gave viewers a strong resonance through the broadcast.
In addition, he confessed honestly about the difficult past he experienced in the dual identity of " Japanese people when he came to Korea, Koreans in Japan".
Choo Sung-hoon opens up about the discrimination he experienced as a Korean-Japanese in his childhood for the first time. He conveys the painful memory of being beaten by his teacher after a quarrel with a friend in middle school and being told "Don't hit the Japanese" and shares with viewers the wounds of the past that have not been easily said. Veteran lecturers such as Oh Eun-young, Seol Min-seok, and Kim Tae-hoon were also deeply moved by his sincere story, raising expectations for the broadcast.
Chu also mentioned malicious comments directed at him and his family in both Korea and Japan, saying, `Which country am I from?I remembered moments when I was in agony. In particular, she was worried that her daughter Chu Sa-rang would be hurt by malicious comments, and she shook the hearts of the audience by confiding that "It hurts every time I think about the hurt that my daughter will suffer.'
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tokkig@sportschosun.com
