Lausanne, Switzerland, October 25, 2020: The President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, said the IOC would fly the Olympic flag at half-mast in honour of IOC honorary member Lee Kun-hee, who passed away on Sunday, October 25. He was 78.
The IOC said that, as Chairman of the Samsung Group since 1987, Mr Lee was responsible for growing the company from a local business into one of the global leaders in technology and a Worldwide Olympic Partner.
President Bach said: “Lee Kun-hee made a great contribution to the Olympic Movement and the success of the Olympic Games by not only making Samsung a TOP Partner of the IOC but also by promoting the Olympic Games worldwide and by fostering the bond between sport and culture.
“This Olympic legacy of Lee Kun-hee will continue to live on. To commemorate him, the IOC will fly the Olympic flag at half-mast in Lausanne.”
The son of Samsung founder Lee Byung-chull, Mr Lee joined the group in 1968 as an Executive Director of Joong-Ang Daily News and Tongyang Broadcasting Corporation after completing an economics degree at Waseda University in Tokyo and an MBA at George Washington University in the United States.
He moved to the role of Vice Chairman of the Samsung Group in 1978.
One year after Mr Lee’s rise to the position of Chairman, Samsung began its legacy with the Olympic Games as a local sponsor at Seoul 1988. With the Olympic Winter Games Nagano 1998, the partnership elevated to the worldwide level, which continues to this day.
Starting with the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, Samsung expanded its Olympic partnership category from Wireless Communication to include Computing Equipment, enhancing its commitment to the Olympic Movement.
Mr Lee practised wrestling as his sport of preference and was President then Honorary President of the Korean Amateur Wrestling Federation from 1982 to 1997. In this capacity he was also a member of the Korean Olympic Committee later becoming Vice President (1993-1996) then Honorary President.
Mr Lee was elected as an IOC Member in 1996 – joining the Cultural (1997) and Finance (1998-1999) Commissions – and became an IOC Honorary Member in 2017. He received the Olympic Order in 1991.
Yonhap News adds:
Lee oversaw the golden age of South Korean wrestling, as the country picked up seven Olympic gold medals, 29 Asian Games gold medals and four world championships on his watch.
With Lee at the helm, Samsung Group launched professional and semi-pro teams in a wide range of sports, including baseball, football, basketball, volleyball, wrestling and table tennis.
Lee was the owner of the Samsung Lions in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) from 1982 to 2001.