hankyoreh

2022, a tumultuous year full of major happenings, is drawing to a close. People from various fields have made Korean headlines, with major events such as Korea’s presidential election, the deaths of prominent cultural figures, and the national football team advancing to the round of 16 at the Qatar World Cup.

The Hankyoreh’s social media team has put together a list of Korean figures who stole the spotlight over the course of the year.

The political newbie with an 8-month-long career who won the election… President Yoon Suk-yeol

Yoon won this year’s presidential election held on March 9, narrowly defeating his opponent, Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party, by 0.73 points, making for the closest presidential election in Korea’s history. Yoon decided to not set foot in the Blue House and instead set up a new presidential office at the Yongsan Defense Ministry building, which sparked controversy. Recently the Yoon administration has been accused of various diplomatic mishaps and of failing to admit its responsibility for the Itaewon tragedy.

The new head of the biggest opposition party… Lee Jae-myung

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, came off his defeat in the presidential election to win a seat in Yeouido in the June 1 by-election and become the leader of the party with an overwhelming 77.77% support rate at the party’s national convention on Aug. 28. However, with the investigation into the Daejang development scandal still ongoing, Lee remains a controversial figure in the news. The recent suicide attempt of Kim Man-bae, a major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu indicted on charges of bribery, has drawn divided reactions from the ruling and opposition parties.

The lawyer trending worldwide, Woo Young-woo… Park Eun-bin

ENA’s television show, “Extraordinary Attorney Woo,” aired its final episode in August. The pilot started with ratings of 0.9%, and the final episode ended with a rating of 17.5%, which goes to show how tremendously popular it was. Actor Park Eun-bin received a lot of love for her stellar portrayal of Woo Young-woo, a genius newbie attorney on the autistic spectrum. Park won the Rising Star Award at an award ceremony organized by the American Critics Association, proving how global her influence was.

The man behind “Gu syndrome”… Son Suk-ku

Actor Son Suk-ku became the unexpected highlight of the JTBC TV show “My Liberation Notes,” which wrapped up in May. Son, who played Mr. Gu, became famous for his line, “I worship you,” which touched off a “Gu syndrome” craze in Korea. You could say that he’s at the height of his career this year, as he also portrayed the main antagonist in the film “The Outlaws 2,” which was the first Korean film released after the pandemic to reach 10 million viewers.

Cultural figures who have passed away

This year we lost many prominent figures in the culture and arts field. Influential figures such as Korea’s inaugural minister of culture, Lee Eo-ryeong, dissident poet Kim Chi-ha, novelist Lee Oi-su, broadcaster Song Hae, world-famous actress Kang Soo-youn, and TV show host Heo Cham passed away. They will be missed.

Ushering a new start to “Korea Sings”... Kim Shin-young

Broadcaster Kim Shin-young was chosen to stand in Song Hae’s footsteps by becoming the next MC of “Korea Sings.” She is the first female solo host since the program started airing in 1980. Kim also made an appearance in the film, “Decision to Leave,” where she showed off her acting chops. She won the Best Supporting Actress Award for that role at the Korea Film Producers Association Awards.

A promotion that took 10 years… Lee Jae-yong

Lee Jae-yong, former vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, took office as executive chairman on Oct. 27. This promotion comes 31 years after he first started at the company (in 1991) and 10 years after he became vice chairman in 2012. He expressed his determination to “stand at the forefront” of turning Samsung into a “truly top-tier company that bypasses what Samsung is today” and creating “a company loved by every Korean and all people of the world.”

Embroiled in a 6.2-billion-won embezzlement court battle with brother… Park Soo-hong

Park Soo-hong made headlines this year when his brother and sister-in-law were sent to trial for embezzling a whopping 6.17 billion won worth of Park’s appearance fees. Things took a further turn for the worse when Park was physically assaulted by his father during the prosecution’s investigation, landing the comedian in the hospital. The incident involving Park and his family also raised interest in a legal practice in which property crimes committed by family members can be exempted from legal punishment.

This year’s miracle… Park Jeong-ha

Miner Park Jeong-ha miraculously came out alive after spending 221 hours trapped in a zinc mine in Bonghwa County, North Gyeongsang Province. Park was able to endure for 10 days with his assistant surnamed Park, 56, who had just started the job 4 days prior to the accident. The two were able to survive 190 meters underground on 18 instant coffee packs. Their miraculous survival and rescue provided comfort and hope to the Korean public as it was reeling in the wake of the terrible disaster in Itaewon.

Bringing joy to the nation at the World Cup… South Korea’s national soccer team

Koreans couldn’t take their eyes off the Korean soccer team as it advanced to the round of 16 in the Qatar World Cup for the first time in 12 years. The players received a lot of public attention, including team captain Son Heung-min, who played with a mask to protect his face after an eye socket fracture, Cho Gue-sung, who was the first player ever to score multiple goals in a match for Korea at a World Cup, Hwang Hee-chan, who scored the winning goal to come from behind against Portugal, and Lee Kang-in, who impressed with his “golden left foot.”

By Choi Mun-jeong, staff reporter

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