The year she turned 14, she entered her first international event and won the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Hungary. In 2005, she took silver at the World Junior Championships and won the Junior Grand Prix Final.
The breakthrough yearIn March 2006, the year she turned 16, she won the World Junior Championships, finishing well ahead of Mao Asada. That November she moved up to the senior level and won her first senior title at Trophée Éric Bompard, and in December she won the Grand Prix Final.
In 2007, she set a world record in the short program at the World Championships and finished third. In December, she won the Grand Prix Final in Turin for a second straight year. At the 2008 World Championships, she took bronze for a second straight year.
In 2009, she won her first Four Continents title, then won the World Championships with 207.71 points, the first total above 200 in women’s singles. At the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, she won gold with 228.56 points. That July, she became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
In 2011, she took second at the World Championships, and in July she gave the Pyeongchang bid presentation at the IOC Session in Durban. In July 2012, she announced her return to competition, and in December she won the NRW Trophy. In 2013, she won the World Championships again after four years.
In 2014, she won silver at the Sochi Winter Olympics, and in May she skated in a farewell ice show. In 2015, she presented scholarships to young skaters at the national championships and was named ambassador for the Lillehammer Youth Olympics. In February 2016, she took part in the opening ceremony events in Lillehammer and coached young skaters.
In November 2017, she carried the Pyeongchang Olympic torch off the plane in Incheon and handed it to the first runner. In February 2018, she lit the cauldron at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics opening ceremony, and in April she returned to an ice show after four years. In 2019, she performed two programs at another ice show. In February 2020, she donated 100 million won to the COVID-19 response.
In 2022, she was appointed ambassador for the Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics, and in October she married Ko Woo-rim. In 2023, she attended an event promoting the Gangwon Games as ambassador. In June 2025, she spoke at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics briefing. In September 2026, she donated the outfits she wore to light the cauldron at Pyeongchang to the 2018 Pyeongchang Foundation.
Yuna Kim (born Sep 5, 1990) debuted in Sep 2004, the year she turned 14, when she entered her first international event and won the ISU Junior Grand Prix, and became known when she won the Grand Prix Final on Dec 17, 2006, the year she turned 16. She won Olympic gold in 2010, the year she turned 20.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.
Won her first international event with 148.55 points, her international debut.
Source 01 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · Yuna Kim career overview · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The event and score are confirmed in news reports. The September timing is from Wikipedia.Won the silver medal at the World Junior Championships.
Source 01 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · Yuna Kim career overview · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The placing is confirmed in news reports. The event date could not be confirmed.Won the Junior Grand Prix Final in Ostrava, Czech Republic, with 174.12 points.
Source 37 · ISU · 2005–06 Junior Grand Prix Final ladies’ results · opens in a new tab Confirmed by the official ISU results. A December 2006 Kyeongin Ilbo profile listed this event as a second-place finish, but the official result is a win.Finished 24.19 points ahead of Mao Asada with 177.54. It is cited as the event where her name began to appear on the international stage.
Source 02 · Kyunghyang Shinmun (Korean) · 16-year-old Yuna Kim swept 2006 · opens in a new tabSource 36 · Nocut News (Korean) · Yuna Kim vs. Mao Asada · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The win is confirmed in news reports. Nocut News called it Korean figure skating’s first world championship win. The scores and margin are from Wikipedia.Entered the senior Grand Prix series for the first time and finished third.
Source 01 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · Yuna Kim career overview · opens in a new tabSource 35 · Kyeongin Ilbo (Korean) · Yuna Kim interview and profile · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The bronze medal in her senior debut is confirmed in news reports. Kyeongin Ilbo called it third at the second Grand Prix event. The event name and November timing are from Wikipedia.Won her first senior title with 184.54 points. It was the first senior Grand Prix win by a Korean skater.
Source 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tabSource 35 · Kyeongin Ilbo (Korean) · Yuna Kim interview and profile · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The win and score are confirmed in news reports. Kyeongin Ilbo called it first place at the fourth Grand Prix event. The date and the Korean-first claim are from Wikipedia.Won the Grand Prix Final in her first senior season. She turned 16 that year, and Kyunghyang Shinmun called 2006 the year of Yuna Kim.
Set a world record of 71.95 points in the short program and finished third overall.
Source 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The score and placing are confirmed in news reports. That the event was held in Tokyo in March is from Wikipedia.Scored 133.70 points in the free skate, a world record.
Source 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tabSource 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The score is confirmed in news reports. The placing and date are from Wikipedia.Beat Mao Asada again at the Grand Prix Final in Turin for a second consecutive title.
Source 04 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Return home on March 2, 2010 · opens in a new tab Confirmed through a retrospective passage in a March 2010 Yonhap article. A same-day report was not found.Finished third in Gothenburg with 183.23 points. Mao Asada won.
Source 05 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · 2008 World Championships bronze · opens in a new tabFinished 5.16 points ahead of Joannie Rochette with 189.07.
Source 06 · YTN (Korean) · First Four Continents title · opens in a new tab The article ran on Feb. 7, 2009. The event date could not be confirmed.Won her first World Championships in Los Angeles. It was the first total above 200 points in women’s singles since the new scoring system was introduced in 2003.
Source 07 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · First World Championships title · opens in a new tabSource 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tabAdded 150.06 in the free skate for a world-record 228.56 total and won the gold medal. The winning score in the women’s singles at the 2026 Milan Olympics was 226.79, short of this total.
Source 08 · Newsis (Korean) · Vancouver Olympic gold · opens in a new tabSource 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tabSource 31 · Star News (Korean) · Milan women’s singles winning score · opens in a new tab The article is dated Feb. 26, 2010, Korea time. The 2026 winning score is confirmed by a Star News article.Finished second at the World Championships in Turin.
Source 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab Date and placing are from Wikipedia; not confirmed in news reports.Became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Appeared in Korean and English in an advertisement for the campaign marking six months since the Haiti earthquake.
Source 09 · Nocut News (Korean) · UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador · opens in a new tabFinished second in Moscow with 194.50 points. Miki Ando won.
Source 10 · Kyunghyang Shinmun (Korean) · 2011 World Championships silver · opens in a new tabGave a presentation in Durban, South Africa, ahead of the vote on the host of the 2018 Winter Olympics. Pyeongchang received 63 votes and Munich 25.
Source 11 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Pyeongchang bid and Yuna Kim · opens in a new tabThe IOC chose her as ambassador for the first Winter Youth Olympics, held in Innsbruck in January 2012.
Source 12 · Hankook Ilbo (Korean) · Ambassador for the first Winter Youth Olympics · opens in a new tabSaid at a press conference at Taereung Athletes’ Village that she would compete again. She said she would skate through the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
Source 13 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Comeback announcement · opens in a new tabWon in Dortmund, Germany, with 201.61 points in her comeback event. It was her first score above 200 in two years and 10 months, since Vancouver, and earned her a World Championships berth.
Source 14 · Xportsnews (Korean) · NRW Trophy win · opens in a new tabWon in London, Ontario, with 218.31 points. It was her first World Championships title since 2009.
Source 15 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · 2013 World Championships win · opens in a new tabSource 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tab The article is dated Mar. 17, 2013, Korea time.Won her last international event before the Sochi Olympics with 204.49 points.
Source 34 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab Date and score are from Wikipedia; not confirmed in news reports.Won the silver medal in Sochi. She finished in the top three at every event she entered, from novice to senior.
Source 16 · Kukmin Ilbo (Korean) · Sochi silver and all-podium record · opens in a new tabSource 03 · Xportsnews (Korean) · Yuna Kim’s journey · opens in a new tabSource 01 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · Yuna Kim career overview · opens in a new tabThe ice show held at the Olympic Gymnastics Arena in Olympic Park from May 4 to 6 was her farewell.
Source 17 · Star News (Korean) · All That Skate 2014 · opens in a new tabSource 23 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · All That Skate 2018 · opens in a new tabGave scholarships to young skaters at the national championships at Mokdong Ice Rink. It was her first appearance at a domestic competition since retiring.
Source 18 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · KB Financial skating scholarships · opens in a new tabThe IOC chose her as ambassador for the 2016 Lillehammer Games, her second after Innsbruck in 2012.
Source 19 · Kukmin Ilbo (Korean) · Lillehammer Youth Olympics ambassador · opens in a new tabTook part in the Olympic flag handover at the opening ceremony and gave skating lessons to young skaters.
Source 20 · Sports Chosun (Korean) · A day in Lillehammer · opens in a new tabCarried the torch off the plane herself and handed it to the first runner. She was a Pyeongchang Olympics ambassador at the time.
Source 21 · Hankook Ilbo (Korean) · Pyeongchang torch arrives in Incheon · opens in a new tabLit the cauldron as the final torchbearer at the opening ceremony at Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium. She skated on the ice to receive the torch before lighting it.
Source 22 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · Pyeongchang opening ceremony cauldron lighting · opens in a new tabPerformed in the ice show held at Mokdong Ice Rink from Apr. 20 to 22. It was her first ice show in four years, since her farewell.
Source 23 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · All That Skate 2018 · opens in a new tabPerformed two programs at the KSPO Dome in Olympic Park.
Source 24 · Cookie News (Korean) · All That Skate 2019 · opens in a new tabDonated 100 million won to the COVID-19 response through the Korean Committee for UNICEF.
Source 25 · Hankook Ilbo (Korean) · COVID-19 donation · opens in a new tabThe appointment ceremony was held in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. The Games were held in Gangwon from Jan. 19 to Feb. 1, 2024.
Source 26 · Seoul Shinmun (Korean) · Gangwon 2024 ambassador appointed · opens in a new tabMarried Ko Woo-rim of the crossover group Forestella.
Source 27 · Newsis (Korean) · Second wedding anniversary · opens in a new tabAs a Gangwon 2024 ambassador, attended an event at Yongpyong Resort in Pyeongchang to promote the Games.
Source 28 · Sports Chosun (Korean) · Winter Korea Festival Day · opens in a new tab The event was held on Jan. 19, 2023, and the article ran on Jan. 31.As ambassador, joined the Games schedule around the opening ceremony, with a talk concert and event viewing planned during the Games.
Source 29 · KBS (Korean) · Gangwon 2024 ambassador Yuna Kim · opens in a new tab The final cauldron lighter at the opening ceremony was a freestyle skier, not Yuna Kim.Spoke at a briefing in Gangnam, Seoul, and told athletes preparing for the Olympics to enjoy the Games.
Source 30 · Newsis (Korean) · Milan Olympics official briefing · opens in a new tabDonated two outfits worn at the 2018 Pyeongchang opening ceremony to the 2018 Pyeongchang Foundation. They were put on display at the Pyeongchang Olympic Museum.
Source 32 · Kangwon Ilbo (Korean) · Cauldron-lighting outfit donated · opens in a new tabSource 33 · MBC Gangwon Yeongdong (Korean) · Pyeongchang Olympic Museum exhibit · opens in a new tabEND OF SELECTED RECORDSSelected records, 2004–2026 · not a complete list of work. “Key moment” is an editorial label, not a measure of success.
What did they do, and at what age?
AgeTrail lines up the key moments of a life by age.
Debut and breakthrough are marked separately, and every record has a source.
Sports · South Korea
Sep 5, 1990 —
Ages are counted from the birth year 1990: the year of the event minus 1990, birthdays aside. “Key moment” labels and the connecting story are AgeTrail's editorial reading.
Fact-checked: 2026.09.21 · An independent archive, not affiliated with the person or their agency.