Martin Hyun
Encyclopedia
Martin Hyun is an author and former ice hockey
player in Germany's Deutsche Eishockey Liga.
, he began playing ice hockey at the age of 5, progressing his way through local youth leagues and into the Krefeld Pinguine
's youth development system. He became a regular player for the German Junior National Team. In 1997 he was called up by Coach Miroslav Berek and Manager Rüdiger Noack to begin the season with the Elite league team at the age of 17, where he scored two goals in five preseason games playing alongside former NHLer Peter Ihnacak. Hyun played most of the season with the second-league playing development team. In 1998 Hyun decided to go to the United States to further his education and pursue his hockey career at the same time. He first studied at Benilde-St. Margaret's High School, a Catholic
school in St. Louis Park
, Minnesota
, later transferring to Northwood Prep School in Lake Placid
, New York
.
Soon after arriving in the United States
, Hyun became a fan of National Hockey League
player Paul Kariya
who has Japanese heritage. After failing to be picked in the NHL Draft during the World U-17 Championships in Moncton, Canada in 1997, Hyun put aside his pursuit of a professional NHL hockey career, and enrolled in Colchester
, Vermont
's Saint Michael's College
, where he played NCAA
Division II hockey. In 2002 Hyun won the ECAC Division II Northeast Championship with the Purple Knights. Upon graduation in 2003, he entered a masters' program at the University of Kent
's Brussels
campus; while a student, he also played for a Belgian Hockey League
team in Leuven
. He returned to Germany in 2004 to sign with the Krefeld Pinguine. With his signing Hyun became the first Korean to ever make it to the highest professional league in Germany. He made his league debut on September 17th 2004 against the Cologne Sharks. Hyun chose to wear Number 71 to honour the accomplishments of Korean guestworkers in Germany. In April 2005 Hyun was invited by German President Horst Köhler to attend the state banquet in honour of the state visit of South Korean President
Roh Moo-hyun
. Hyun is only the third player of Korean heritage to play in the highest league, the earlier two being Jim Paek and Richard Park.
, where he worked with the National Assembly and the Ministry of Health and Welfare
to promote Korean-German friendship. Though Hyun sometimes faced racism and exclusion in Germany, he stated that he felt like even more of a stranger in South Korea; he returned to Germany to enroll in a doctoral programme at the University of Bonn
, where he is writing his thesis on the experiences of second-generation Korean youth in Germany. He also gained more experience in the political world with the German and European Parliament and the Ministry of Generations, Family, Women and Integration. He has published a book entitled Lautlos-JA Sprachlos-NEIN (Silent-YES Speechless-NO) on the social integration experiences of second generation Koreans in Germany. The book was published in 2008 by EB-Verlag Hamburg ISBN: 978-3-936912-84-5. In his highly-acclaimed debut book Hyun was supported by his friend and bestselling author Wladimir Kaminer. They both performed together on stage at the Goethe-Institut in Seoul. In 2008 Hyun was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the European Year of the intercultural dialogue, which has been called out by the European Commission and European Parliament.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player in Germany's Deutsche Eishockey Liga.
Hockey career
The son of Korean immigrants in GermanyKoreans in Germany
Koreans in Germany numbered 31,248 individuals , according to the statistics of South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Though they are now only the 14th-largest Korean diaspora community worldwide, they remain the second-largest in Western Europe, behind the rapidly-growing community...
, he began playing ice hockey at the age of 5, progressing his way through local youth leagues and into the Krefeld Pinguine
Krefeld Pinguine
The Krefeld Pinguine are an ice hockey team in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. They play in Krefeld, North-Rhine-Westphalia, Germany at the KönigPALAST. Founded first in 1936, the pro team became a limited liability company in 1994 and joined the top tier Deutsche Eishockey Liga...
's youth development system. He became a regular player for the German Junior National Team. In 1997 he was called up by Coach Miroslav Berek and Manager Rüdiger Noack to begin the season with the Elite league team at the age of 17, where he scored two goals in five preseason games playing alongside former NHLer Peter Ihnacak. Hyun played most of the season with the second-league playing development team. In 1998 Hyun decided to go to the United States to further his education and pursue his hockey career at the same time. He first studied at Benilde-St. Margaret's High School, a Catholic
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
school in St. Louis Park
St. Louis Park, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 44,126 people, 20,782 households, and 10,557 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,122.5 persons per square mile . There were 21,140 housing units at an average density of 1,975.0 per square mile...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, later transferring to Northwood Prep School in Lake Placid
Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Soon after arriving in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Hyun became a fan of National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
player Paul Kariya
Paul Kariya
Paul Tetsuhiko Kariya is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey winger who played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League . Known as a skilled and fast-skating offensive player, he played in the NHL for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Colorado Avalanche, Nashville Predators and St...
who has Japanese heritage. After failing to be picked in the NHL Draft during the World U-17 Championships in Moncton, Canada in 1997, Hyun put aside his pursuit of a professional NHL hockey career, and enrolled in Colchester
Colchester, Vermont
Colchester is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. The population was 17,067 at the 2010 census. It is the fourth-largest municipality and second-largest town in Vermont by population.-Geography:...
, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
's Saint Michael's College
Saint Michael's College
Saint Michael's College is a private, residential liberal arts Catholic college. The campus is located in Colchester, Vermont. It was founded in 1904 by the Society of Saint Edmund, a French order of Catholic priests.-History:...
, where he played NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
Division II hockey. In 2002 Hyun won the ECAC Division II Northeast Championship with the Purple Knights. Upon graduation in 2003, he entered a masters' program at the University of Kent
University of Kent
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
's Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
campus; while a student, he also played for a Belgian Hockey League
Belgian Hockey League
The Belgian Hockey League was the highest level of competition sanctioned by the Royal Belgian Ice Hockey Federation until 2011 . The league winner was the Belgian Champion. It is played since 1912...
team in Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
. He returned to Germany in 2004 to sign with the Krefeld Pinguine. With his signing Hyun became the first Korean to ever make it to the highest professional league in Germany. He made his league debut on September 17th 2004 against the Cologne Sharks. Hyun chose to wear Number 71 to honour the accomplishments of Korean guestworkers in Germany. In April 2005 Hyun was invited by German President Horst Köhler to attend the state banquet in honour of the state visit of South Korean President
President of South Korea
The President of the Republic of Korea is, according to the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, chief executive of the government, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and the head of state of the Republic of Korea...
Roh Moo-hyun
Roh Moo-hyun
Roh Moo-hyun GOM GCB was the 16th President of South Korea .Roh's pre-presidential political career was focused on human rights advocacy for student activists in South Korea. His electoral career later expanded to a focus on overcoming regionalism in South Korean politics, culminating in his...
. Hyun is only the third player of Korean heritage to play in the highest league, the earlier two being Jim Paek and Richard Park.
Retirement
After only one season, Hyun retired from professional ice hockey to move to South KoreaSouth Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, where he worked with the National Assembly and the Ministry of Health and Welfare
Ministry of Health and Welfare
-External links:*...
to promote Korean-German friendship. Though Hyun sometimes faced racism and exclusion in Germany, he stated that he felt like even more of a stranger in South Korea; he returned to Germany to enroll in a doctoral programme at the University of Bonn
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn is a public research university located in Bonn, Germany. Founded in its present form in 1818, as the linear successor of earlier academic institutions, the University of Bonn is today one of the leading universities in Germany. The University of Bonn offers a large number...
, where he is writing his thesis on the experiences of second-generation Korean youth in Germany. He also gained more experience in the political world with the German and European Parliament and the Ministry of Generations, Family, Women and Integration. He has published a book entitled Lautlos-JA Sprachlos-NEIN (Silent-YES Speechless-NO) on the social integration experiences of second generation Koreans in Germany. The book was published in 2008 by EB-Verlag Hamburg ISBN: 978-3-936912-84-5. In his highly-acclaimed debut book Hyun was supported by his friend and bestselling author Wladimir Kaminer. They both performed together on stage at the Goethe-Institut in Seoul. In 2008 Hyun was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the European Year of the intercultural dialogue, which has been called out by the European Commission and European Parliament.
Politics
Hyun has become a vivid fighter for minority rights in Germany. In 2007 Hyun was selected among thirty young leaders with a foreign background to participate in the Bertelsmann-Foundation Leadership-Program in order to promote social integration of minorities in Germany. As a professional ice hockey player Hyun inititated a mentoring-project for children from low income families and helped children with cancer. On October 10th 2008 Hyun received a second invitation from German President Horst Köhler to talk about the demographic change and increasing diversity in Germany. In 2010 Hyun initiated the "Hockey is Diversity" campaign to promote diversity outside the boundaries of sports in Germany.Awards
- 1997 World U-17 Hockey Championships, Moncton, Canada
- 2002 ECAC Division II Northeast Champion, USA