Han Pil-hwa


Han Pil-hwa is a female North Korean speed skater who competed in the 1964 Winter Olympics and in the 1972 Winter Olympics. She was the first woman to represent North Korea at the Olympics.

Speed skating

In 1964 she won the silver medal in the 3000 meter event and she is the first Winter Olympic medalist in both Koreas. In the 1500 meter competition she finished ninth and in the 500 meter contest she finished 28th.
Eight years later she finished ninth in the 3000 metres event, eleventh in the 1000 metres competition, and 13th in the 1500 metres contest.
Between 1963 and 1968 Han Pil-hwa was also a regular guest at the World Allround Speed Skating Championships for Women. In 1965 championships in Oulu she reached highest and got to a fifth place in the allround event. Her best single distance result was a third place on the 3000 meter at the 1966 championships in Trondheim.

Records

Over the course of her career, Han Pil-hwa skated the following best results:
DistanceResultDateLocation
500 m44.925 Dec 1969Bujen
1,000 m1:32.326 Dec 1969Bujen
1,500 m2:24.225 Dec 1969Bujen
3,000 m5:03.726 Dec 1969Bujen
Mini combination189.73225/26 Dec 1969Bujen

Season best performances

Over the seasons, Han Pil-hwa skated the following best results:
Season500m1000m1500m3000mRemark
1958/5952.71.48.22.50.66.07.0all set at the 1959 Kazach SSR Prize at Medeo, Alma-Ata
1962/6346.81.36.12.30.05.37.2all set during the 1963 World Allround Speed Skating Championships for Women at Karuizawa
1963/6448.01.38.02.30.15.18.5
1964/6548.81.41.72.29.15.21.6all set during the 1965 World Allround Speed Skating Championships for Women at Oulu
1965/6648.71.37.32.34.35.10.9all set during the 1966 World Allround Speed Skating Championships for Women at Trondheim
1966/6748.11.41.42.28.25.19.9
1967/6848.61.38.32.30.75.21.2all set during the 1968 World Allround Speed Skating Championships for Women at Helsinki
1968/6947.21.36.42.29.45.17.0all set during a 1969 Socialist friendship meeting in Sverdlovsk
1969/7044.91.32.32.24.25.03.7
1970/7147.441.34.72.29.65.07.1
1971/721.33.792.25.645.07.24all set during the 1972 Winter Olympics at Sapporo

Politics

After her career in sports, Han has held various offices in politics and sports administration. She became the chief secretary of the Speed Skating Association February 1986. She has also been deputy director general of the Guidance Bureau for Winter Sports of the National Sports Committee, head of the Technical Guidance Office for Winter Sports of the National Sports Committee, vice-chairwoman of the Korea Ice Skating Association, and vice-chairwoman of the Athletic Technique Union.
Han is a member of the North Korean headquarter of the since January 1991. She was elected to the country's parliament in 1998.