Kabaddi National Team Player Woo Hee-jun, Unique Background Draws Attention
Discovered Kabaddi and Felt Its Charm During Trip to India
Woo Hee-jun (29), a female national team member participating in the kabaddi event at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, has an unusual background that draws attention.
Woo is a former Miss Korea and a Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) officer, a unique combination. She entered Ulsan University in 2016 and, due to a prank by her juniors, applied for the 2019 Miss Korea pageant, overcoming a competition ratio of 700 to 1 to be selected as a finalist. Although initially embarrassed by her juniors' prank when applying for Miss Korea, she decided to participate thinking it would help promote kabaddi, a less popular sport. Later, she also represented Korea in the international beauty pageant 'Miss Earth.'
After graduating from Ulsan University, Woo was commissioned as the 59th ROTC officer in 2020. Since 2021, she has served in the Army Special Warfare Command's International Peace Support Group. During this period, she was deployed to Lebanon as an interpreter officer. While serving, she introduced kabaddi to her squad members and pursued her dream of becoming a national team member, eventually being discharged as a first lieutenant in June.
Kabaddi, the sport in which Woo competes wearing the Taegeuk mark and aiming for a medal, is a mix of tag and martial arts. Two teams of seven players each compete, with one attacker entering the opposing team's territory to touch defenders and return to their own side to score points. If caught by the opposing team, the attacker concedes points and possession switches. A distinctive feature is that the attacker repeatedly chants "kabaddi" (meaning "to hold one's breath" in Hindi) while crossing into the opponent's territory.
Although the sport is unfamiliar to many, Woo first encountered kabaddi ten years ago in 2013. She fell deeply in love with the sport during a trip to India, the birthplace of kabaddi. After returning from her trip, she contacted the Kabaddi Association in Busan and began training, embarking on her path as a professional athlete. Woo is also known to have excellent athletic ability, having competed as a hurdler in middle school.
Meanwhile, Woo is currently undergoing intensive training in Busan, aiming for the gold medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games opening this September. The 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, originally scheduled for 2022, were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are now being held this year. The games start on the 23rd and conclude on the 8th of next month.
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