Shin was born on 14 May 1951 in Seoul. He began studying taekwondo in 1958 and began competing in tournaments in 1964. In August 1970, he was drafted into the Korean army, where he continued to compete. After his military service ended in 1975, he founded his first taekwondo school in Seoul (Kong-Choung). In 1978 he emigrated to Austria. In 1980 he opened his own school in Austria called the Koryo Sports Center. In 1986 he was elected coach of the Austrian national taekwondo team. In 2005 Shin became a WTF 9th Dan black belt.