Lee Duk Hee

Founder of the ITF Chuncheon Lee Duk Hee Cup

Lee Duk Hee (born July 13, 1953) is a retired female tennis player from South Korea who was active during the 1970s and 1980s. She is the first professional tennis player in South Korean history.

In December 1972, at the age of 19, Lee Duk Hee made history by participating in the main draw of the Australian Open, becoming the first South Korean player to enter a Grand Slam tournament.

In the 1974 Tehran Asian Games, she, along with Yang Jung-Soon, won the team gold medal and the women's doubles silver medal. In the 1978 Bangkok Asian Games, she achieved success in the singles and doubles events, winning 2 gold medals, in addition to a team silver medal.

Her international career took off in 1979 when she went to the United States and became the first South Korean to register as a professional player. From then on, she actively participated in the WTA Tour.

In 1980, at the French Open, Lee Duk Hee recorded her second main draw victory in a major tournament, defeating Claudia Kohde-Kilsch of Germany in the first round. In the same year, she became the first South Korean player to compete in all four major tournaments.

At the 1981 US Open, Lee Duk Hee reached the fourth round by defeating Australia's Susan Leo in the first round, American Susan Mascarin in the second round, and causing an upset against Romania's Virginia Ruzici, the 1978 French Open champion, in the third round. However, she was defeated in the fourth round by Czechoslovakia's Hana Mandlíková, who eventually went on to win the tournament.

In January 1982, she won her first tour title at Fort Myer in the United States, defeating Yvonne Vermaak of South Africa in the final with a score of 6-0, 6-3. Lee also reached the Round of 16 at prestigious events like Hilton Head and the German Open in the same year. She continued to perform well and reached the third round of the US Open. In 1982, Lee achieved her highest world ranking, reaching 30th place (9th August 1982).

Lee Duk Hee retired in 1983 at the age of 30. She participated in a total of 14 Grand Slam tournaments, reaching the second round or beyond in 11 of them.

After her retirement, she has been organizing the Lee Duk Hee Cup International Junior Tennis Tournament annually to contribute to the development of youth tennis in South Korea.