About Han Kyu-chul
Born 1981. Han Kyu-chul is a South Korean swimmer.
Han Kyu-chul (; born December 24, 1981) is a South Korean former swimmer, who specialized in freestyle, butterfly, and individual medley events. He is a two-time Olympian (2000 and 2004), and an eight-time bronze medalist at the Asian Games (2002 and 2006).
Han made his first South Korean team, as an eighteen-year-old junior, at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. There, he failed to reach the semifinals in any of his individual events, finishing nineteenth in the 200 m butterfly (1:59.85), and thirty-third in the 200 m individual medley (2:06.42).
When South Korea hosted the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, Han won a total of four medals, including two in the freestyle relays. He also enjoyed his teammate Cho Sung-Mo by giving the Koreans a 2–3 finish in the 1500 m freestyle, earning him a bronze in 15:22.38.
At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Han shortened his program, swimming only in the men's 200 m freestyle. He cleared a FINA B-standard entry time of 1:50.54 from the World Championships in Barcelona, Spain. He challenged seven other swimmers in heat five, including three-time Olympian Jacob Carstensen of Denmark. Han rounded out the field to last place by two hundredths of a second (0.02) behind Hungary's Tamás Szűcs, outside his entry time of 1:52.28. Han failed to advance into the semifinals, as he placed thirty-third overall in the preliminaries.
At the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Han added four more bronze medals to his collection for a total of eight. He also helped out his South Korean team, including three-time champion Park Tae-Hwan, to defend their medals from Busan in the 400 and 800 m freestyle relays.
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Important facts
People in Han Kyu-chul's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Han Kyu-chul's
Frequently asked questions
Who is Han Kyu-chul?
South Korean swimmer
When was Han Kyu-chul born?
Han Kyu-chul was born on 24 December 1981 in South Korea.
What is Han Kyu-chul's occupation?
Han Kyu-chul is a swimmer.
What nationality is Han Kyu-chul?
Han Kyu-chul is South Korean.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Han Kyu-chul. https://biography.guide/han-kyu-chul/
MLA: "Han Kyu-chul." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/han-kyu-chul/.
Chicago: "Han Kyu-chul." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/han-kyu-chul/.
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