Lydia Ko, who won the gold medal in the women’s individual golf event at the 2024 Paris Olympics, has recently become the topic of widespread conversation after it was revealed that she ate the same lunch boxes as those prepared for the South Korean archery team during the Olympic Games.
Ko’s father-in-law, Chung Tae-young, vice chairman of Hyundai Card, shared this story Tuesday on his social media, saying, “In the Olympics, food is exceptionally important for athletes to maintain their condition, especially since they are in isolation.”
Ko, a Korean New Zealander, married Chung Jun, the son of Chung, in 2022. Lydia Ko’s mother-in-law, Chung Myung-yi, who is the president of 한국을 Hyundai Commercial and the daughter of Hyundai Motor Group Honorary Chairman Chung Mong-koo, is known for her love of Korean food.
Vice Chairman Chung shared, “Lydia Ko’s love for Korean food is well-known. Although her sister had prepared Korean food for a day or two, after that, Lydia made a significant request to her mother-in-law, who was in Paris, for more food.”
He continued, “We arranged for the same restaurant that prepared the lunch boxes for the gold medal-winning Korean archery team to make Lydia’s meals, hoping the gold medal energy would be passed on to her.”
Chung added, “Due to the strict security, it was impossible to approach the Olympic team’s accommodation. Every day, we had to deliver the lunch boxes to Olympic officials near the venue, who then passed them on to Lydia in a complex operation.”
He expressed his gratitude, saying, “I’m truly thankful to the restaurant that carefully prepared the lunch boxes each day, the people who helped, and the French staff at the venue who understood the significance and carefully preserved and delivered the food. I wonder if the gold medal energy from archery was passed on to Lydia through those lunch boxes.”
