Min Min-kyu's after-work routine: "I often watch Shorts and Lilith"

Earlier this month, for the first time in 18 years since Kim Yeon-ah, a South Korean male athlete won gold at the Junior World Championships. Fifteen-year-old Min Min-kyu is just a month into his senior year of high school.

His gold medal was as notable as his upbringing. Born and raised in Daegu, South Korea, Min Gyu first laced up his skates at the age of four thanks to his mother, who has taught figure for over 20 years in Daegu, and his father. His father had a life completely unrelated to figure, and four years ago, he built a small in-ground training center in an apartment building in Daegu so that his son could train.

The father's passion doesn't stop there: He's even taught himself how to train in a "harness," which is essential for figure athletes to practice jumps indoors, so he can sweat it out with his son. With the exception of training for the national team, Min-kyu has been training exclusively in Daegu. If he makes the national team, his father is responsible for the eight-hour round-trip drive. "It's very special to have a private training session in a foreign country or outside of Seoul," he told us. "It's very special to have a private training session in a foreign country or outside of Seoul," said figure officials.

This season, the next generation of figure hopefuls is sweating it out in his hometown of Daegu with higher dreams. On the 15th of last month, we went to the ground training center built by his father.