You may know Yun Sung Bin from his appearance in Netflix's first season of Physical: 100, or due to his subsequent guestings on variety shows Running Man and I Live Alone. If you're an avid sportsman or a fan of the Olympics, the national athlete represented South Korea and took home the gold in the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.
However, Sung Bin is now trending due to his reported relationship withTWICE's Jihyo. Learn more about the athlete-turned-entertainer in this trivia cheat sheet.
READ: 10 Things You Need To Know About Yun Sungbin
1. He was born in 1994.
Sung Bin was born on May 23 in the coastal region of Namhae, South Gyeongsang Province. The Gemini is turning 30 this year! Gemini thrive in high-pressure work environments and are awesome team players, who see to it that everything's "resolved and done."
2. He was very much into sports growing up.
From an early age, Sung Bin excelled in a variety of physical activities, including soccer, badminton, competitive running, and jumping. He is now an avid golfer.
His childhood hero was South Korea's ex-Manchester United footballer Park Ji Sung.
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3. Sung Bin is a former Olympian.
He moved to Seoul when he was in middle school, and continued playing sports with the goal of getting noticed by a sports university.
While playing basketball in high school, his physical education teacher, Kim Young Tae, saw his potential as a skeleton racer. Fun fact: Kim Young Tae was serving as one of the officials at the Korea Bobsleigh Skeleton Federation at the time.
ICYDK, skeleton is a winter sliding sport. The person rides a small sled, known as a "skeleton bobsled (or bobsleigh)," down a frozen track head-first while lying face down. Unlike other sliding sports, the skeleton race always involves single riders. It begins with athletes having a running start from the opening gate at the top of the course.
Sung Bin became the first Asian skeleton racer to win a gold medal in the sport at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Prior to Pyeongchang, Sung Bin won five gold medals and two silver medals in the 2017-18 Skeleton World Cup.
4. Sung Bin is a huge fan of Iron Man.
In fact, he was famously nicknamed "Iron Man," after racing in an Iron Man-style helmet and red skinsuit. "Iron Man is just one of my favorite characters," he told reporters. "I chose (the Iron Man-style helmet) because sliding on a skeleton track looks almost like Iron Man flying in the air."
The athlete got to meet his idol when the cast of Avengers: Infinity War visited Korea for a press tour last July 2022. He excitedly shared the photos on Instagram, saying "RDJ told me to contact him when I came to LA after the filming was over, but he didn't tell me where to contact him..." (as per IG's translation). LOL!
He also recently promoted the Iron Man-inspired phone case by Casetify!
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5. He is a variety star.
He recently appeared on episode 498 of the MBC variety program I Live Alone last June 2023, where he shared his workout routine.
He also guested on Running Man and left the cast in aww of his physical capabilities, including jumping over a 130cm stack of mats!
6. He was a contestant on season one of Physical: 100.
Sung Bin was the very last out of all 100 contestants to enter the large meeting room in the first episode, and his physique shocked viewers and fellow contestants alike.
Many were rooting for him to take home the ultimate prize money of 300 million won (about P12.6M), but despite his strong start and impressive performances, Sung Bin ultimately lost during "Game 5: Punishment of Sisyphus," which had contestants push a 100kg boulder up and over a hill every 40 seconds until only one remained.
7. He also has a YouTube channel.
After retiring from professional sports, Sung Bin currently runs his own YouTube channel. And of course, what else did he name it but "@ironbin." His content usually covers physical activities and his stint in Physical: 100. His most recent upload was four months ago, and revealed his attempt at rapping with Loco.
8. He is a dog lover.
Sung Bin is the proud "older brother" of a brown poodle named Genie. Genie was born on June 12, 2019, and has his own Instagram account with almost 5k followers: genie_poodle.
9. He is reportedly dating Jihyo of TWICE.
On March 25, SWAY (a Korean media outlet) reported that Jihyo and Yun Sung Bin "became close through their common interest of exercising and have been dating for a year." As per Soompi, they first met through an acquaintance. SWAY reported that the two would go on dates in the Geumho neighborhood within the Seongdong district of Seoul. The two "live just a few minute’s drive away," and would have dates at each others homes.
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According to an insider, "Jihyo and Yun Sung Bin both love to exercise. Yun Sung Bin gave training help to Jihyo and their relationship from there developed into a romantic one."
In response to the report, JYP Entertainment released a statement: "It is difficult to confirm as it is [the artist’s] personal matter. We ask for your understanding."
Sung Bin's agency All That Sports also crafted an official response: "As he is no longer an active athlete, we do not manage his personal life. It is difficult to confirm."
10. Sung Bin fits Jihyo's ideal type!
ICYMI, TWICE's leader talked about her preference for men in a radio show, where she revealed that she likes well-built men.
"I was watching the drama Signal the other day and thought Cho Jin Woong looks very strong and fit. So, I think my ideal type would be someone sturdy."
