Young You

Young You is a South Korean figure skater known for her technical excellence, including landing the triple Axel in international competition, and her early dominance in the sport as the youngest winner of the South Korean senior national championships at age 11 in 2016. ^[1] She has achieved significant success on the global stage, winning gold at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games, earning silver at the 2020 Four Continents Championships with a personal best total score of 223.23, and placing fifth at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. ^{[2] [1]} Born on May 27, 2004, in Seoul, You began skating in 2010, initially inspired by 2010 Olympic champion Yuna Kim while growing up in Singapore before relocating to South Korea for advanced training. ^[1] She has since trained in multiple countries, including Canada, the United States, and Japan, under coaches such as Tammy Gambill and Ji Eun Choi to refine her skills in ladies' singles. ^[1] Her competitive record includes additional strong performances, such as fifth place at the 2022 World Championships, bronze medals at Grand Prix events like Skate Canada in 2022, and multiple national titles, establishing her as one of South Korea's leading figure skaters of her generation. ^[1]

Early life

Birth and family background

Young You was born on May 27, 2004, in Seoul, South Korea. ^[1] She is the third child and only daughter of businessman You Il-jin, who worked in Indonesia, and Lee Sook-hee, making her the youngest of two older brothers. ^{[3] [4]} Her family relocated to Singapore when she was one year old. ^[3]

Childhood abroad and return to Korea

Young You spent her childhood in Singapore, where she grew up after relocating there at age one. ^[3] Inspired by Yuna Kim's gold medal win at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, she began figure skating that same year. ^[1] With no professional figure skating coaches available in Singapore, she initially taught herself jumps by watching videos of Yuna Kim and Mao Asada repeatedly. ^[3] She attended primary school in Singapore, retaining fond memories of her schooldays, friends, and the local food. ^[5] She returned to South Korea for better training conditions. ^[1]

Figure skating career

Early competitions and national dominance

Young You first captured national attention by winning the senior women's title at the 2016 South Korean Figure Skating Championships at the age of 11, becoming the youngest skater to claim the national championship in South Korea's history and surpassing Yuna Kim's previous record of winning at age 12 in 2003. ^{[6] [7]} She followed this breakthrough with a fifth-place finish at the 2017 South Korean Championships. ^[8] You reclaimed the national title in 2018 and successfully defended it in 2019, establishing consistent dominance on the domestic scene. ^[7] In January 2020, at age 15, she won her fourth national championship with a total score of 220.20 points, marking her third consecutive victory and reinforcing her position as South Korea's leading female skater at the time. ^[7] She added her fifth national title by winning the 2022 South Korean Championships. ^[9] These repeated successes at the national level highlighted her early superiority over domestic competitors before transitioning to greater international exposure.

Junior international career

Young You made her international junior debut during the 2017–18 season on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit, placing fourth at the JGP Croatia Cup and fifth at the JGP Egna/Neumarkt in Italy. ^[10] She followed these results by competing at the 2018 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, where she finished ninth overall. ^[10] In the 2018–19 season, You earned a bronze medal at the JGP Bratislava in Slovakia and placed fourth at the JGP Canada. ^[10] She then achieved a stronger showing at the 2019 World Junior Championships, finishing in sixth place. ^[10] Beyond her JGP and World Junior appearances, You won gold in the junior ladies category at the Bavarian Open in 2019. ^[10] She also claimed first place at the Winter Children of Asia International Sports Games in 2019. ^[11] She transitioned to senior-level international competition during the 2019–20 season. ^[10]

Senior debut and rise to prominence

Young You made her senior international debut during the 2019–20 season, beginning with a bronze medal at the CS Lombardia Trophy. ^[12] She then made her Grand Prix debut at Skate Canada International, where she placed third and became the first Korean woman to land a ratified triple Axel in an international competition. She followed with a fourth-place finish at the Cup of China. Later in the season, Young You competed at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics, winning the gold medal to become the first Asian woman to claim the ladies' title at the event and the only female skater to successfully land a triple Axel at the Youth Olympics. ^[13] She capped her breakout season with a silver medal at the 2020 Four Continents Championships held in Seoul, scoring 223.23 points overall for the first Korean medal at the event since 2009. ^[14] These achievements highlighted her technical prowess, particularly her mastery of the triple Axel, and positioned her as a leading contender in women's figure skating entering the next season.

2022 Beijing Olympics and aftermath

You Young represented South Korea in the women's singles event at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, where she placed fifth overall with a total score of 213.09. ^[15] She scored 70.34 in the short program for sixth place and 142.75 in the free skate for fourth place in that segment. ^[15] The Olympics coincided with personal tragedy, as her father died in February 2022; she later explained that this led her to decline participation in the Olympic gala exhibition. In the 2021–22 season leading to the Olympics, You Young secured a podium finish on the Grand Prix series with third place at NHK Trophy. ^[16] She concluded the season with fifth place at the 2022 World Championships. ^[16] Her performances declined in the following years. During the 2022–23 season, she achieved third place at Skate Canada International but finished eleventh at the South Korean Championships. ^[16] In 2023–24, she recorded lower results including eleventh at Skate America, eighth at the Grand Prix of Espoo, and twelfth at the 2024 World Championships. ^[16]

Suspension and return to competition

In June 2024, the Korea Skating Union imposed a one-year suspension from the national team on You Young following an alcohol incident and alleged photos involving a teammate. ^{[17] [18]} The decision prevented her from participating in national team activities and competitions during that period. ^[17] During the suspension period, You Young encountered significant personal and professional difficulties, including the loss of sponsorships and taking on part-time jobs to support herself financially. ^[19] These challenges compounded the impact of her temporary exclusion from competitive figure skating. ^[18] In April 2025, a court suspended the effect of the KSU's disciplinary decision, restoring You Young's athlete status and eligibility to compete. ^[17] Subsequently, the Korea Skating Union voided the suspension in May 2025, fully clearing her to return to international and domestic events. ^{[19] [18]} She marked her return in the 2025–26 season with placements of 9th at the Grand Prix de France, 4th at the NHK Trophy, and 8th at the South Korean Championships. ^[17]

Achievements

National championships

You Young is a five-time South Korean national champion in ladies' singles figure skating, securing titles in 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022. ^[20] Her first victory came at the 2016 South Korean Figure Skating Championships when she was 11 years old, making her the youngest skater ever to win the senior national title in South Korea. ^{[21] [7] [22]} She reclaimed the title in 2018 and successfully defended it in 2019 and 2020 to claim three consecutive championships, earning her fourth national title overall at the 2020 event with a total score of 220.20 points. ^[7] Her 2020 free skate score of 143.67 marked a personal best at nationals, though such scores are not ratified by the ISU. ^[7] You Young added her fifth national championship in 2022. ^[20] In other years, she placed fourth in 2021, eleventh in 2023, and seventh in 2024 at the national championships. ^[9] These national results have served as key qualifiers for her international assignments, including world championships and Olympic selections.

International medals and titles

Young You has secured several notable medals in international figure skating competitions, particularly at the youth, championship, Grand Prix, and Challenger Series levels. She won the gold medal in the ladies' singles event at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne, performing a strong free skate that included a triple Axel and seven other triple jumps to claim the title. ^{[23] [10]} This victory marked her as a rising talent on the international stage. Later in the same season, You earned the silver medal at the 2020 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Seoul, her home country, finishing second overall with a total score of 223.23 points behind Japan's Rika Kihira. ^{[10] [24]} On the ISU Grand Prix circuit, You collected four bronze medals: at Skate Canada International in 2019, Skate America in 2021, NHK Trophy in 2021, and Skate Canada International in 2022. ^[10] These consistent podium finishes highlighted her competitiveness among senior women skaters. She also won silver at the 2022 CS U.S. International Figure Skating Classic. ^[10]

Records and historic firsts

You Young became the first South Korean woman to land a ratified triple Axel in an international competition at the 2019 Skate Canada International, where she performed the jump in her short program during her senior Grand Prix debut. ^{[25] [26]} She achieved a technical element score of 45.54 in that short program, reflecting her advanced jumping ability at age 15. At the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics in Lausanne, she landed a clean triple Axel in her free skate, becoming the only female skater to execute the jump at any Youth Olympic Games up to that point, and won the ladies' singles title to become the first Asian woman and the first South Korean to claim gold in women's figure skating at the event. ^{[25] [27] [28]} She later posted a technical element score of 79.94 in the free skate at the 2020 Four Continents Championships, one of the highest marks recorded in international ladies' competition at the time and a testament to her technical dominance among peers. These pioneering jumps and high technical scores established her as a leading figure in the sport's technical evolution for younger competitors transitioning to senior levels.

Personal life

Family tragedy

You Young's father passed away in February 2022, during her participation in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.^[29] This personal loss occurred amid the competition, and as a direct result, she declined an invitation to perform in the Olympic Gala exhibition.^[29] Later that year, reflecting on the impact of the tragedy, You Young described the period as a profoundly difficult time, stating that her father's death during the Olympics made it very hard to return to the ice.^[29] At the 2022 MK John Wilson Trophy in November, she honored her father's memory by dedicating her exhibition program "Like My Father" to him, serving as a public tribute to the family tragedy and its emotional weight on her career.^[29]

Controversies and legal resolution

In May 2024, during the South Korean national figure skating team's training camp in Varese, Italy, You Young and teammate Lee Hae-in were caught consuming alcohol, which violated team regulations.^[19] Additional allegations emerged that You Young took sexually offensive photos of Lee Hae-in and showed them to an underage male teammate who was reportedly in a romantic relationship with Lee.^[18] Lee Hae-in faced separate accusations of sexually harassing the underage male teammate, though she maintained that no harassment occurred due to their consensual relationship.^[18] Following an investigation, the Korea Skating Union (KSU) imposed a one-year suspension on You Young and a three-year suspension on Lee Hae-in in June 2024, citing the drinking incident and additional disciplinary issues.^[19] You Young challenged the sanction in court, and on March 25, 2025, the Seoul Eastern District Court granted an injunction suspending enforcement of the KSU's decision, restoring her athlete status and national team eligibility.^[17] The court determined it was difficult to conclude that You Young's photographing actions were intended to cause sexual humiliation or repulsion, and found no evidence that she had shared the photos with the male teammate; a statement from Lee Hae-in affirming that You Young never shared the images and that no sexual harassment occurred also supported the ruling.^[17] In response to the court injunctions for both athletes, the KSU voided the suspensions on May 13, 2025, through mediation under new leadership, capping any potential future penalties related to the case at four months and allowing You Young and Lee Hae-in to resume unrestricted competition.^[18][19] This legal resolution enabled You Young to return to skating without ongoing restrictions from the incident.^[18]

Media and public profile

Television and event appearances

Young You's television appearances consist exclusively of credits as herself in broadcasts of figure skating competitions and Olympic events in which she participated, with no roles in scripted programming or fictional productions. ^[30] These appearances are documented on IMDb and are limited to sports coverage tied directly to her competitive skating career. ^[30] She was credited as Self (billed as You Young) in one episode of the TV mini-series PyeongChang 2018: XXIII Olympic Winter Games during the 2018 Winter Olympics. ^[30] In 2021, she appeared as Self in two episodes of the TV mini-series 2021 Skate America. ^[30] For the 2022 Winter Olympics, she was credited as Self (as You Young) in two episodes of Beijing 2022: XXIV Olympic Winter Games. ^[30] She also appeared as Self in the 2022 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, presented as a TV special. ^[30]