Realizing his dream at age 10 and overcoming all obstacles

One day in February 2010, Si-hyung Lee saw a scene on television that would change his life forever. At the time, the Vancouver Winter Olympics women's single figure skating medal ceremony was being broadcast live, and the then ten-year-old couldn't take his eyes off the screen.

“You know that figure skating awards ceremonies are held at an ice rink. With all the lights turned off, the winners appear one by one, illuminated by pin lights. It was really, really cool. That scene was so fascinating that I really wanted to do figure skating from that moment on.”

The boy fell in love with figure skating, regularly twirling in the school hallway as he would on ice during recess, and he eventually became a competitive figure skater. But his journey to becoming a professional skater was far from easy, because of financial issues and Korea's inadequate athlete training system. Still, his love for figure skating kept him from giving up on his dream.

“To be honest, when I started skating, I had no motivation other than that I just liked the sport. If I had thought about achieving a grand goal, I wouldn't have even started. My circumstances were not as good as other skaters’ and my potential for growth was slim. I thought I had achieved my goal just by being able to continue competing, and I still think so. Otherwise, I would have quit a long time ago.”

The fun and intense life of a figure skater and college student

Initially he felt like it was a daunting mission to juggle national team training with college life. The round trip between the Taereung Training Center and Sejong Campus took him over four hours by car. He had no choice but to cram classes into two days a week.

“I remember the first semester of my freshman year. I went to school on Mondays and Wednesdays. I had lectures back to back from nine in the morning to six in the afternoon. I didn’t have time to eat lunch. I had to wake up at 5 am to make it to first period on time. All I remember is that it was really hard. But I had no other options, because I had to gain credits.” (He laughs)

Although he was always busy attending lectures, he had opportunities to enjoy the spirit of college life, by hanging out with other students.

“There was a group assignment to make a 2-minute video. There were five people in my group, and we had Zoom meetings during the week to gather ideas. We decided to do something fun, a video of ourselves doing aerobics. We filmed ourselves dancing together in the campus playground. I have fond memories of the times I spent with my college friends. I didn’t have much time because my training site was far from campus. But I always tell others not to miss school festivals and to enjoy their college life to the fullest.”

“It’s a great blessing to be able to live doing what you love.
There are people who support and love me regardless of my performances or results.”

A skater who has shone for a long time

For professional athletes, maintaining a healthy body and mind is a career-long task. Injuries and stress are a daily occurrence for them as they push their bodies to the limit under extreme competitive pressure. Si-hyung’s love for skating, support from those around him, and his determination not to succumb to the challenges facing him were a big part of why he has been able to maintain his physical and mental strength under such adverse conditions.

“It’s a great blessing to be able to live doing what you love. There's no way to avoid hardships in life. I am no exception. When times were difficult, I didn't get caught up in various situations and instead focused on how I could get better. The reason I was able to do that is because there are always people who support and love me regardless of my performances or results.”

When he was younger, he didn't listen to ballad music for fear that slower music would reduce his energy levels and affect his performance in training. These days, he doesn't shy away from calming music.

“I think it’s because I’m getting older now (laughs) and there’s a risk of injury if I don’t practice with a more calm mind. The ballad he likes to listen to these days is the song “Adult” from the OST of the drama “My Mister.”

He hopes there will be more skaters who can continue their skating careers for a long time. In that respect, he is a happy skater who has already achieved his dream.