Sorry rojo. The problem with these “I’ll reveal at X time” threads you like is we are all on the internet.
Believe me or not, 3:38 was my guess when I read the thread title.
No it was not. It was 3:36.01. So it's not all over the INternet and even if was, you could still play the game correctly by not cheating. You must have been a nightmare for your parents at xmas. "No one is allowed to go downstairs until everyone is up. We'lll go down at 9 am as a family."
Brett Larner wrote:
Between international travel and illness we've been AWOL for a while, but it's time to catch up on what's been going on. The Hokuren Distance Challenge series rolled on with two more meets in Kitami on the 16th and Chitose on the 12th. After shaving 0.05 off the South Korean men's 1500 m NR last month at the HDC Shibetsu meet, Jae Ung Lee took the NR into new territory with a 3:36.01 win in Kitami. He was pushed all the way by Nanami Arai (Honda), who moved up to all-time Japanese #3 with a 3:36.58 for 2nd.
The 3:36.01 Lee ran in Kitami, was a 2.5 seconds improvement...3:38.55 at the Shibetsu, Japan track meet on June 14, 2025. 2.5 seconds improvement is monster territory.
How much faster can he run? He's done 1:47/800, which would indicate he could take the S.K. record down to around 3:32.00.
Btw, in comparison, the Jap 1500 record is 3:35.42, set at the Hokuren distance challenge in 2021, by Kazuki Kawamura, same last name as (5.8) phenom point guard Yuki Kawamura, Memphis Grizzlies.
Strangely, the 3:36.01 by Lee is not yet listed in W.A. stats.
Close, 3:38.55, on June 14, 2025, at a track meet in Japan. New Korean record holder's name is Jake Ung Lee. Previous record was 3:38.60 by Kim Soon Hyung, in 1993 (!) at the Asian Games in Manila, Philippines.
Korea is not a powerhouse in track. They have a world class high jumper these days, Woo Sang Hyeok, a 2.35m monster, and anomalous extrovert for a Korean.
Korea: Soccer and Taekwondo are the national sports. Strange, Japan is just across the Southernmost border, across a sea straight of Korea, but night and day difference.
Koreans love beer, meat and kimchi, not necessarily in that order.
South Korea: High suicide rate, high depression, high divorce rate. All time bombs.
Have you worked in South Korea? Yours truly did. Mehh experience....
It's a nice place, I always had a good time there. I went 5 times over the last 3 years to Busan - that's a cool place. Would run every morning at like 5.30am in the Busan Citizens park, such a beautiful small park with tons of different paths to make loops on. So clean, no people sleeping in it, just people enjoying and respecting the space.
At first I thought it had the modernity of Japan (which in many respects it does) but the people not as shackled by tradition and it's imperial past, but I sort of changed my mind the more I went there. Those things you mention - I could see that.
They also love their baseball - definitely not in their track and field. Given that I guess 3.38.55 is okay. Right?
If you go to S.K. on vacation you may have a good time, but living and working there is a different matter, and a significant number of foreigners found teaching English in S.K.to be a stressful experience. Koreans are much more brusque in their manner compared to Japanese, and less friendly, in general, compared to Chinese. At least that was my experience, and the experience of many colleagues of mine, with whom we compared notes.
It needs to drizzle before it pours. Figuratively speaking of course.
Close, 3:38.55, on June 14, 2025, at a track meet in Japan. New Korean record holder's name is Jake Ung Lee. Previous record was 3:38.60 by Kim Soon Hyung, in 1993 (!) at the Asian Games in Manila, Philippines.
Korea is not a powerhouse in track. They have a world class high jumper these days, Woo Sang Hyeok, a 2.35m monster, and anomalous extrovert for a Korean.
Korea: Soccer and Taekwondo are the national sports. Strange, Japan is just across the Southernmost border, across a sea straight of Korea, but night and day difference.
Koreans love beer, meat and kimchi, not necessarily in that order.
South Korea: High suicide rate, high depression, high divorce rate. All time bombs.
Have you worked in South Korea? Yours truly did. Mehh experience....
Also 6th in the international PISA tables for high school maths.
The US is not even in the top 30, and is behind Malta.
Close, 3:38.55, on June 14, 2025, at a track meet in Japan. New Korean record holder's name is Jake Ung Lee. Previous record was 3:38.60 by Kim Soon Hyung, in 1993 (!) at the Asian Games in Manila, Philippines.
Korea is not a powerhouse in track. They have a world class high jumper these days, Woo Sang Hyeok, a 2.35m monster, and anomalous extrovert for a Korean.
Korea: Soccer and Taekwondo are the national sports. Strange, Japan is just across the Southernmost border, across a sea straight of Korea, but night and day difference.
Koreans love beer, meat and kimchi, not necessarily in that order.
South Korea: High suicide rate, high depression, high divorce rate. All time bombs.
Have you worked in South Korea? Yours truly did. Mehh experience....
Also 6th in the international PISA tables for high school maths.
The US is not even in the top 30, and is behind Malta.
Yep, S.K.focuses on education, to the point where most elementary and high school students go to night school cram classes after their regular school day. Incredible pressure and stress.
In most European countries, a skilled tradesman like electrician, carpenter, etc..is respected. Sadly, that's not the case in South Korea. Has to be academic subjects, preferably Math and the sciences leading to engineering, etc.
It needs to drizzle before it pours. Figuratively speaking of course.
Close, 3:38.55, on June 14, 2025, at a track meet in Japan. New Korean record holder's name is Jake Ung Lee. Previous record was 3:38.60 by Kim Soon Hyung, in 1993 (!) at the Asian Games in Manila, Philippines.
Korea is not a powerhouse in track. They have a world class high jumper these days, Woo Sang Hyeok, a 2.35m monster, and anomalous extrovert for a Korean.
Korea: Soccer and Taekwondo are the national sports. Strange, Japan is just across the Southernmost border, across a sea straight of Korea, but night and day difference.
Koreans love beer, meat and kimchi, not necessarily in that order.
South Korea: High suicide rate, high depression, high divorce rate. All time bombs.
Have you worked in South Korea? Yours truly did. Mehh experience....
Short Track Speedskating is pretty big and successful in South Korea.
You must have been a nightmare for your parents at xmas. "No one is allowed to go downstairs until everyone is up. We'lll go down at 9 am as a family."
We lived in a single-storey apartment. And we didn’t celebrate Xmas. 🎅
That explains it. Even if you aren't religious, all kids should get to enjoy Santa.
It needs to drizzle before it pours. Figuratively speaking of course.
Close, 3:38.55, on June 14, 2025, at a track meet in Japan. New Korean record holder's name is Jake Ung Lee. Previous record was 3:38.60 by Kim Soon Hyung, in 1993 (!) at the Asian Games in Manila, Philippines.
Korea is not a powerhouse in track. They have a world class high jumper these days, Woo Sang Hyeok, a 2.35m monster, and anomalous extrovert for a Korean.
Korea: Soccer and Taekwondo are the national sports. Strange, Japan is just across the Southernmost border, across a sea straight of Korea, but night and day difference.
Koreans love beer, meat and kimchi, not necessarily in that order.
South Korea: High suicide rate, high depression, high divorce rate. All time bombs.
Have you worked in South Korea? Yours truly did. Mehh experience....
many good MMA fighters from SK these days... a market the UFC has started to explore and there are many fighting in Road to UFC (UFC feeder tournament from Asia) and other promos across Asia. Kind of surprised running isn't more popular there though.
Honestly, 3:36 is astonishing for South Korea, which has close to zero athletics development at the junior level. The academic pressure is something else, perhaps the worst on the planet. He must be an enormous talent to run 3:36 despite all of that.
Middle distance/long sprints has always been a weakness for east Asians. Not sure why. I don't think genetics are AS BIG of an issue as everyone makes them out to be for this. Obviously doesn't help, but still.