The incident permanently changed his life.
Super Junior member Heechul recently opened up about the life-altering physical changes he underwent after a horrifying accident years ago.
The idol opened up about the painful experience during the October 31 broadcast of KBS Joy’s 21st Century Hit Song. The episode featured artists who had endured severe pains and challenges in life and fought through them to make their way back to the stage.
When one of the guests, rock singer Kim Kyung Ho, talked about enduring avascular necrosis in his femoral head, Heechul related to his pain, recalling that his femur was also left completely damaged due to his horrific car accident. The idol revealed that his height decreased significantly after that, adding, “I used to be about 185 cm.”
As per Heechul’s current profile, he is 176 cm tall, which implies that he lost around 9 cm of height due to the accident.
In 2006, Heechul was involved in a terrifying car accident. He was on his way home from a group schedule and his car crashed badly, leaving the idol with multiple fractures in his ankle, hip, and femur. Heechul had to undergo a major surgery and follow through with extensive treatment and rehabilitation therapy. Even after all of that, he was left with a level-4 physical disability according to Korea’s medical grading system.
Heechul had previously talked about that painful period of his time on his YouTube channel, recalling that the doctors had feared he might never walk again. He was also honest about struggling to accept his physical disability and the shame that came before the acceptance.
Heechul’s raw honesty has touched viewers, reminding them once again of how resilient the idol has been in his recovery and return to the industry.