'Radio Star' singer Ko Woo-rim revealed his love story with his wife, 'Figure Queen' Kim Yu-na.
On the broadcast of the MBC entertainment program 'Radio Star (abbreviated as Ra-seu)' aired on 18th, guests included Kim Tae-kyun, Cheon Rok-dam (Lee Jeong), Lee Dae-hyung, and forestella Ko Woo-rim.
Ko Woo-rim, who recently completed his 1 year and 6 months of military service and was discharged, chose 'Radio Star' as his first variety show after returning to civilian life. He expressed his nervousness, saying, 'Just being able to come out is an honor. Since this is a new beginning, I wanted to validate my sense of entertainment, so I came out.'
In particular, Ko Woo-rim drew attention as the husband of former figure skater Kim Yu-na, who was loved by the entire nation. He mentioned about his recent situation with Kim Yu-na, saying, 'Since I've been away for 1 year and 6 months, I thought we needed some time together, so I went on a 9-night, 10-day trip to Paris with my wife.' He also shared a selfie taken during their trip for the first time.
He said, 'The hotel staff who first greeted us looked at us coolly at first, but on the day of our departure, they approached us with a smile. They recognized my wife and congratulated her on her successful life as an Olympic champion. I was bursting with pride for my wife.'
He continued, 'My wife is a strong J in terms of MBTI. She had already fully planned and made reservations. Usually, my wife makes very wise decisions, so I've never been disappointed with her choices. She is not someone who pressures me to just do this or that. She always asks me what I want to do. We had a really happy trip.'
What was Kim Yu-na's reaction to the news of Ko Woo-rim appearing on 'Radio Star'? Ko Woo-rim said, 'Since this is my first variety show after being discharged, she was very happy to hear it was 'Radio Star.' Senior Kim Gu-ra will probably ask various questions, and she sent a message of encouragement for me to respond well and do great.' He added, 'After about 3 years of marriage, it naturally became easier to talk about things.'
In fact, it was Kim Yu-na who first sent a direct message (DM) to Ko Woo-rim. He said, 'In hindsight, my wife never imagined she would marry someone younger. Since there is a 5-year age difference, I worried that I might not seem mature enough. I tried hard to speak well, and I think the most appealing aspect was my mature-sounding voice.'
Moreover, he recounted, 'We met for the first time at an ice show, and then there was no follow-up. She came to receive a signed CD, and that was our first meeting in the waiting room. At that time, I never thought I would want to meet her again. I just felt something special. My group leader Min-kyu's wife also sent a DM saying thank you. The day they met was actually my birthday. Min-kyu informed me about it, and then I got a message from her. After that, I invited her to our performance, and as the three of us watched together, Min-kyu slowly started to fade away, and it ended up being just the two of us.'
There was a four-year period of secret dating, but in reality, it wasn't that secret. Ko Woo-rim explained, 'We comfortably met even in public. Since I had just debuted, my face wasn't widely known, so I could pass as a regular person, and I thought some might consider me to be her manager. I felt that trying to hide would make it even more suspicious. It's been 3 years of marriage, but since she was off for a year and a half because of the military, it felt like our honeymoon lasted longer, which I think is nice.'
He particularly expressed, 'I was 24 when I confessed to my wife. At that time, I was very young, and having not served in the military yet, it felt a bit early to bring up marriage. I had held feelings of wanting to marry before dating, and when I mentioned wanting to do so, I was honestly worried that it might not be taken seriously. But she said, 'I'll wait for you,' and so I brought up the military topic first.'
Additionally, he joked, 'Since she is younger than me, I was worried that calling her by her name would make her feel too much like a sister. So, I call her 'self' and 'honey.' I started calling her 'self,' and after marriage, I started saying 'honey.' When we first met, I did call her 'sister,' but I can't say that once we started dating; it would upset her.'
However, during his military service, he was very careful to hide his wife. Ko Woo-rim shared, 'Since my wife’s face is quite known, she told me not to let her visit. But my wife wanted to come very much, so she did, and when she wrote her name on the visitation list, the news spread throughout the entire battalion. There were times I even got autographs. On one hand, I worried that since my wife came to visit, some uncomfortable situations might arise.'
His military uniform even had 'Woo-rim♥Yu-na' embroidered on it. Ko Woo-rim humorously stated, 'It's a well-known fact that my wife appears a lot in advertisements, and each time that happened, my juniors would watch TV and all get up and bow in greeting. It was a cute culture.'
[Photo] OSEN DB, SNS source, provided by MBC.
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