Actor Song Joong Ki's past as a short-track speed skater representing Daejeon Metropolitan City has been revealed.

On February 20, 2018, Channel A's entertainment program 'Heard It Through the Grapevine (The Rumors Show)' dealt with the teenage years of Song Joong Ki, who was active as a short-track skater in the past. Song Joong Ki has been skating since the first year of elementary school, but in the second year of middle school, he suffered an ankle injury and stopped skating.

Song Joong Ki is a short-track speed skater representing Daejeon Metropolitan City for 6 years and has participated in national sports events three times. 

In May of last year, Song Joong Ki said in ' Song Joong Ki, Live ', which was broadcast live through the YouTube channel 'historydnc', "I was so proud of my national sports experience that I wore a jumper with 'Daejeon Metropolitan City' written on it."

After quitting skating, Song Joong Ki hoped to become an announcer, so he got 380 out of 400 and entered Sungkyunkwan University's business school.

In 2006 when he was a college student, he also had a history of appearing in 'Quiz Korea' and winning a runner-up.

Meanwhile, Song Joong Ki has been cast as the male lead, Yoon Hyun Woo, in the JTBC pre-production drama 'The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate' which is scheduled to premiere in the first half of the year.

Based on the web novel of the same name, 'The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate House', it is a fantasy regression about Yoon Hyun Woo, a secretary who manages the owner risk of the family of a conglomerate, returning to Jin Do Joon, the youngest son of a chaebol family, and trying to take over the group.

Watch the interview here

The battle between NewJeans (NJZ) and HYBE just got more intense! During a court hearing, NewJeans presented evidence claiming that ILLIT’s concept, styling, and choreography are too similar to theirs!

On March 7, the Seoul Central District Court held a hearing on ADOR’s injunction request to stop NewJeans (Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, Hyein) from operating independently and signing advertising contracts without ADOR’s approval.

NewJeans’ legal team didn’t hold back, stating, “HYBE launched ILLIT as a copy of NewJeans. They tried to damage NewJeans’ brand and replace them.”

They added, “Even HYBE employees noticed it. NewJeans debuted three years earlier, but their project plans look shockingly similar. The structure, documents, and content are nearly identical.”

NewJeans’ side even compared hanbok photoshoots of both groups, saying, “At first glance, you can’t tell which one is NewJeans and which one is ILLIT.”

They added, “Why did they have to copy the same colors, styles, and textures? Even fans were the first to point this out, saying, ‘This is too much.’”

They also accused ILLIT of copying NewJeans’ iconic choreography. They presented a side-by-side comparison video of NewJeans’ “Attention” dance move, claiming that ILLIT directly copied it.

“Some people said ILLIT was just paying homage to their seniors, but NewJeans never gave permission for that,” they stated. “This is an unauthorized and almost identical copy of our signature moves.”

Instead of responding to these accusations, NewJeans’ side claimed that HYBE launched an internal audit against Min Hee-jin and engaged in media play. They added, “HYBE simply said, ‘We can’t determine if this is plagiarism, so let’s wait for the court’s ruling.’”

NewJeans members are fighting to leave ADOR, claiming their exclusive contract ended on November 28, 2023.

They even announced their new group name, ‘NJZ’, and have started independent promotions, including a song release at ComplexCon Hong Kong on March 23.

However, ADOR insists that NewJeans is under contract until July 31, 2029. The agency has filed lawsuits to prove the contract is still valid and to stop NewJeans from signing solo advertisement deals.

As the legal battle continues, fans are left wondering—is this just the beginning of an even bigger fight?

Source (1)