Kim Gyu-dae


Kim Gyu-dae is a Paralympic athlete from South Korea who competes in T54 track and field events.

Athletics career

Kim, who is classified as a T54 classification wheelchair racer, first represented South Korea at the Summer Paralympics at the 2008 Games in Beijing, competing as part of the South Korea relay team in the 4 × 100 m and the 4 × 400 m, and in the individual 200 metres and 400 metres. He won a single medal, bronze in the 100 metre relay. Four years later, at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London he won a second bronze medal, this time an individual success in the 1500 m (T54).
As well as Paralympic successes, Kim won three medals at the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships, in Lyon, the most notable of which was his gold in the 800 metres (T54).

Personal history

Kim was born in Tongyeong, South Korea in 1984. In 2004 whilst training for the South Korean UDT/SEAL, he suffered permanent spinal injuries during parachute training. Along with that he is a Professor at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.