Fencing star Oh Sang-uk reveals complex kinship with chef Nam Sung-Hoon

During the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games special of Chef & My Fridge broadcast on the 25th, gold medalist Oh Sang-uk described his distant blood relation to Culinary Class Wars chef Nam Sung-Hoon as being the son of the sister of the wife of his paternal grandfather's younger brother.

Fencing gold medalist Oh Sang-uk revealed an unexpected blood relation to chef Nam Sung-Hoon, who gained fame through the Netflix cooking competition Culinary Class Wars. More eye-catching than the fact that the two are relatives was the highly complicated nature of their kinship. Upon hearing the explanation, the chefs shook their heads, saying, "At that point, you are strangers," turning the studio into a scene of laughter.

The JTBC entertainment program Chef & My Fridge, broadcast on the 25th, was presented as an Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games special. The episode featured various guests, including fencing star Oh Sang-uk, who won gold medals in the men's sabre individual and team events, women's 57kg judo gold medalist Huh Mi-mi, and Biwesa Daniel Gasama, a key figure in the South Korean record-breaking men's 400m relay.

During the broadcast, Oh Sang-uk identified Nam Sung-Hoon as a member of his family. He described the relationship as being the "son of the sister of the wife of the younger brother of my paternal grandfather." The complexity of the explanation, which differed significantly from typical relative introductions, left the chefs visibly bewildered. The atmosphere turned humorous as reactions such as "At that point, you are strangers" and "You are further apart than strangers" poured in.

However, Nam Sung-Hoon actively emphasized the blood connection, highlighting his link to Oh Sang-uk. The sight of the two insisting they were family members, regardless of how distant the relation actually was, triggered laughter. Furthermore, other chefs also attempted to appeal to their closeness with the gold medalist, sparking an unexpected psychological battle among the chefs surrounding Oh Sang-uk.

The broadcast also revealed Oh Sang-uk's unique eating habits. A lover of Korean food who even packs rice and a rice cooker when traveling abroad, he shared how he grew approximately 30cm during middle school and introduced the foods that contributed to his rapid growth spurt. His massive appetite and the special circumstances that led him to become a big eater drew significant interest. In particular, a curious commonality was discovered between his favorite ingredients and his fencing skills.

The cooking battles to capture Oh Sang-uk's palate were held in a unique format. For the first time in the history of Chef & My Fridge, a special "item battle" was arranged where chefs utilized their own secret weapons. In the first match, Park Eun-young and Nam Sung-Hoon faced off in their first confrontation of the 2026 season. Park Eun-young brought out a luxury item that only senior chefs can handle, leaving Oh Sang-uk in astonishment. Nam Sung-Hoon countered with a special item he had spent two years preparing.

The second match featured a confrontation between Choi Hyun-seok and Son Jong-won. As the two have consistently delivered impressive matches whenever guests representing national prestige appear, they signaled another fierce culinary battle. Choi Hyun-seok expressed confidence, stating, "I will show the best cooking seen on Chef & My Fridge," but tension rose as it was reported that he faced the greatest crisis in the history of the show after the battle began.

The broadcast featured diverse stories, ranging from the gold medalist's unexpected relative reveal and unique appetite to the item battles involving the chefs' pride. In particular, the complex kinship between Oh Sang-uk and Nam Sung-Hoon garnered as much attention as the cooking battles, providing unique entertainment to viewers.

Read the original (Korean)