Swimmer Cho Oh-yuen embarks on new Dokdo project
KBS reports:
Swimmer Cho Oh-yuen embarks on new Dokdo project
| Nicknamed the “Asian seal,” Cho Oh-yuen (58) launched his latest challenge of swimming around the Dokdo Islets 33 times to promote Korean sovereignty over the islets. He planned the project early this year; trained for five months on Jeju Island; and arrived on Dokdo to begin the challenge on Aug. 28 with an eight member crew. They lodged at a fishermen’s quarters on the western Dokdo islet and lived with Mr. Kim Seong-do, the sole resident of Dokdo. The 33 lap Dokdo challenge is to uphold the spirit of the 33 Korean patriots who signed a declaration during the March 1st 1919 independence movement.In Aug. 2005, Cho swam across Dokdo with his two sons Seong-woong (27) and Seong-mo (23). A specially designed plastic safety dock was set up for the three-way relay swim between Dokdo and nearby Ulleung island (87.4㎞), which took 18 hours. |
| From record setter to the crossing of the Straits of Korea |
| When listing Cho’s accomplishments, his 1980 crossing of the Straits of Korea in 1980 always takes precedence. Ironically, his challenge to cross the Straits was first inspired by a failed attempt to do the same by a Japanese person in 1972. Cho crossed the 60 km in 13 hours, 16 minutes and 10 seconds. His series of bold challenges continued — he crossed the Strait of Dover; and walked 2,200 km along the Korean coastlines for 73 days (to improve his endurance). But the most difficult of all was gaining weight, which he had to do to store body fat to combat hypothermia during long distance swims. He needed to bulk up from his normal 70 kg range weight to 90 kg.In his peak years, he was known as “the record maker.” In the 1970 and 1974 Asian Games, he won the 400m and 1,500m races. He holds a total 50 Korean records in all the swim events except for the 100m back stroke and 100m & 200m breaststroke. When compared to Park Tae-hwan’s 400m (3:44:30) and 1,500m (15:03:62) records in the world championship, Cho’s 4:40:01 and 18:38:07 seem miles apart, but at the time in the early ’70s, they were Asian records.
Cho quit school in his freshman year of high school year in Dec. 1968 and moved to Seoul. The following year, when he turned 18, was the first time he ever saw an indoor pool. At the same age Park Tae-hwan ascended to the world’s best, Cho laid eyes for the first time on the YMCA multiple-lane pool. Just months later in June 1969, he competed in a nationwide competition and won the 400m and 1,500m events. Korea Sports Council chairman Min Gwan-sik spotted the promising young talent and led Cho to the Korea National Training Center. Thus, his swimming career began. |
| 33 laps around Dokdo in 1 month |
| Cho successfully swam 33 times around Dokdo to promote Korean sovereignty. He began the Dokdo swim on Aug. 1 and began his final lap on Aug. 31 at 11:20 a.m., completing the final 6㎞ distance in 1 hour 5 minutes. He said the cold water and capricious weather were a struggle, but the waves were the biggest challenge. Due to the fierce billowing waves of the deep sea, unlike those near a beach, he couldn’t swim on 10 out of the 31 days.It took him around 1 hour 30 minutes to swim each 5.2 km lap around Dokdo. His final 33rd lap was fast, coming in at 1 hour 5 minutes. During the past month, he usually swam during the day but on the 18th, he swam at night. The fast changing tide and waves were an obstacle. When the tide was against the direction of his swim, he could not move forward no matter how hard he swam. News of Japan’s renewed claim of Dokdo and also the U.S. dropping the Dokdo name for the neutral moniker “Liancourt Rocks” served to boost the morale of the fatigued swimmer. To his joy, on the last day of his swim, the U.S. reaffirmed Dokdo as Korean territory.
The challenge was symbolic of Cho’s love for Dokdo. He stresses that Dokdo has been, is and will always be Korean land. Cho is 58 years old this year, and his glorious past days of sporting a fit physique may have given way to an elderly potbelly, but his timeless talent continues to serve a patriotic cause. |
(September 10, 2008)