Stepping into Speculation: Kim Jong-un’s Mysterious Cane – A Slam Dunk for Rumors

In October 2014, Kim Jong-un went out in public for a while using a cane.

What the National Intelligence Service reported at the time was that Kim Jong-un suffered from ‘tarsal tunnel syndrome’, that is, a lump developed on the malleolus of his left ankle, and European doctors were invited to receive the procedure.

[신경민 (2014년 10월, 당시 국회 정보위 새정치민주연합 간사) : 물혹이 복사뼈 부근에 생긴 것이고, 이것 때문에 붓고 통증이 좀 심해서, 질환 치료를 위해서 해외 전문의들을 초청해서 (김정은이) 시술을 받았고요.]

The idea is that as you exercise while your body is fat, it puts strain on your ankles and causes disease.

At that time, a rumor was spreading in North Korea that Kim Jong-un got injured while playing basketball.

According to Ri Il-gyu, a former counselor at the North Korean embassy in Cuba who defected at the end of last year, rumors that Kim Jong-un sprained his ankle while playing basketball at a private gym were widely spread in North Korea.

[리일규/전 쿠바 주재 북한대사관 참사 : 북한에 중앙당 체육관이라는게 있어요. 김정은 전용 체육관이 있어요. 거기서 이제 농구를 하다가 발목이 삐었죠. 그래서 수술을 받아가지고 일시 안정 치료도 하고 그다음에 현지시찰 나가야 되니까 지팡이 짚고 다녔다….]

You may be wondering, how could Kim Jong-un get hurt while playing basketball when he is fat?

If you look at Kim Jong-un’s appearance in 2010 when he first appeared in public, of course he was fat, but he was much slimmer than now.

At that time, there was talk that he deliberately gained weight to resemble his grandfather, Kim Il-sung, but compared to now, his body was considered to be quite slim, so it seems that he still played basketball in the early days of his reign.

In fact, it is widely known that Kim Jong-un liked basketball.

Specifically, in 2013, after coming to power, former American professional basketball player Dennis Rodman was invited to North Korea.

According to Rodman, he went to North Korea and spent quality time on the beach with Kim Jong-un and his wife, had dinner with them, and even held their then-newborn baby, Kim Joo-ae.

If Kim Jong-un became the highest-ranking official in North Korea and even invited a former American professional basketball player, we can guess how much Kim Jong-un watched American professional basketball during his adolescence and how much he thought of basketball players as his idols.

[리일규/전 쿠바 주재 북한대사관 참사 : (김정은이) 농구를 굉장히 좋아했죠. 북한에 번개팀 우뢰팀이라는 게 있는데 국가대표팀이거든요. 이게 김정은 때문에 김정일이 만들어 놓은 팀이에요. 항상 그 친구들하고 농구를 같이 했다는 거예요. 농구를 그렇게 좋아했대요.]

Currently, Kim Jong-un is estimated to be around 170cm tall and 140cm tall, so he is not fit to play basketball.

In fact, it’s gotten to the point where I’m out of breath every time I give a speech.

[김정은/북한 노동당 총비서 (2021년 1월) : 새로운 전진의 길을 열어나가야 한다는 것이, 본 대회를 통하여 재확인된, 조선노동당의 혁명적 의지입니다.]

[리일규/전 쿠바 주재 북한대사관 참사 : (김정은) 얼굴이 너무 새빨갛고 정상이라고는 생각이 안되더라고요. 그리고 가장 기본적으로는 호흡이 숨소리가 너무 심하게 숨을 항상 차고.]

I tried some dieting in mid-2021 and lost about 20kg.

In the end, the yo-yo effect occurred and we are now back to 140.

According to a recent report by the National Intelligence Service, Kim Jong-un has been showing symptoms of high blood pressure and diabetes since his early 30s, and is currently looking for new drugs.

[박선원 (지난 7월, 국회 정보위 더불어민주당 간사) : 기존의 약으로만 다스리기 어려운 상황도 일부 있지 않겠느냐 하는 추정이 있었습니다. 즉, 기존 약재가 아닌 다른 약재도 찾고 있는 동향이 포착되었다 라고 하는 것입니다.]

Since there will be a doctor by Kim Jong-un’s side 24 hours a day, it may not be a big problem right away, but we will have to keep an eye on Kim Jong-un’s health in the future.

(Video Editing: Park Ki-deok)

Reporter Ahn Jung-sik, specializing in North Korea, cs7922@sbs.co.kr