Kang Ryong-woon (25 April 1942 – before 2002) was a North Korean football forward who played for national team in the 1966 FIFA World Cup. He also played for Rodongja Sports Club.
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 25 April 1942 | ||
| Place of birth | Korea | ||
| Date of death | before 2002 | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Rodongja Sports Club | |||
| International career | |||
| c. 1962–after 1966 | North Korea | 39+ | |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
| Kang Ryong-woon | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 강룡운[1] |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization | Gang Yong-un |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kang Ryong-un |
Early life
editKang was born on 25 April 1942 in what became North Korea.[2] A forward, he played at the club level for Rodongja Sports Club in North Korea's top league.[2] During his playing career, he had a reported height of 167 centimetres (66 in).[2]
International career
editIn 1957, the North Korea national football team was re-organized with the goal of competing at the 1966 FIFA World Cup.[3] In c. 1962, Kang was chosen as one of the best 40 players from the North Korean leagues, whose membership reportedly consisted of over 250,000, to be considered for the national team.[4][5] The 40 players were enlisted into the Army as military officers, under the leadership of colonel and coach Myung Rye-hyun, and went under strict training for the next four years in preparation for the cup.[3][4] Kang and the others trained twice a day starting at 6:00 a.m. and were under other restrictions which included being unmarried, no smoking, no drinking, and (for the last six months) being in bed by 10:00 p.m.[4]
In early 1965, the North Korean leagues were suspended to allow the roster to focus solely on the task of making the World Cup.[4] Kang and the rest of the players gained experience by playing a number of international matches against nations including North Vietnam, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia and China.[5] The team competed at that year's Games of Emerging New Forces (GANEFO) and went undefeated, with a 3–1 win over China in the finals.[5] Later in 1965, they played at the 1966 FIFA World Cup qualification and defeated Australia to become the sole qualifier from the African, Asian and Oceanic zone.[6]
Kang was ultimately chosen as one of 22 players for the World Cup team.[7][8] By the time of the World Cup, he had appeared for the national team 38 times, according to the Evening Telegraph.[4] At the World Cup, the North Korean team played their home games at Ayresome Park in Middlesbrough, England, as part of Group 4 in the tournament which included the Soviet Union, Chile and Italy.[9] Projected as having little chance of success, the team lost their first match, 3–0 against the Soviet Union, before tying Chile 1–1.[9] Kang played all 90 minutes against the Soviet Union, but suffered a leg injury that left him inactive for the subsequent matches.[10][11] After Chile, the team then played against heavily-favored Italy to determine the qualifier to the next round.[12] In a massive upset, North Korea won 1–0 on a goal by Pak Doo-ik.[9][12] The team eventually lost 5–3 in the quarterfinals to Portugal.[9] Kang ended the World Cup with one appearance, playing 90 minutes.[7]
Later life
editFor the team's performance at the World Cup, all the players who appeared in a match were given the title of Merited Athlete, the second-highest honor for sportspeople in North Korea.[13] After the World Cup, it was rumored that the North Korean squad was imprisoned for celebrating the win over Italy in a bar; however, when interviewed in 2002, several players denied this.[14][15] In 2002, the surviving members of the 1966 North Korean World Cup team were interviewed for the documentary film The Game of Their Lives; Kang was deceased by this time.[13][16]
References
edit- ^ "World Cup 1966 national squads". Retrieved 26 October 2018.
- ^ a b c "Ryong-Woon Kang (Player)". National-Football-Teams.com.
- ^ a b Barham, Albert (January 6, 1966). "England are hosts to the elite". The Guardian. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e "No squad better prepared than North Korea". Evening Telegraph. May 21, 1966. p. 32 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "Wizard dribbler with strong shot". Evening Chronicle. June 23, 1966. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Han Bong Jin–he dribbles like Garrincha, shoots like Charlton". Liverpool Daily Post. July 8, 1966. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Kang Ryong-woon Stats". FBref.com.
- ^ "Meet The Twenty-Two Football Wizards From Pyongyang". Sunday Mirror. May 8, 1966. p. 39 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d "When Middlesbrough hosted the 1966 World Cup Koreans". BBC. 15 June 2010.
- ^ "Kang Ryoung-woon 1966 Match Logs". FBref.com.
- ^ "Chile Aim To Put Korea In Cold". Western Daily Press. July 15, 1966. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b White, Jim (18 October 2002). "North Korea in town to relive game of their lives". The Guardian.
- ^ a b Chol-hwan, Kang (4 March 2001). "수용소에서 만난 축구영웅". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean).
- ^ Macleod, Calum (12 November 2001). "Korea boys of '66 are alive and kicking". The Independent.
- ^ Demic, Barbara (22 June 2002). "1966 World Cup Upstarts Absent but Not Forgotten". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "북한 월드컵 8강주역들 영국 방문". NK Chosun (in Korean). 16 October 2002.
