Photo: BioNTech / CC BY-SA 4.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Uğur Şahin is one of the most genuinely inspiring figures in this database. Born in İskenderun, Turkey, he built a scientific career in Germany as an oncologist before co-founding BioNTech and delivering the world's first mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. His awards are staggering, including the Financial Times Person of the Year, yet what moves me is not the recognition but the underlying story: years of patient cancer research, suddenly redirected to meet a global emergency. That a researcher's accumulated knowledge could be turned so swiftly toward saving millions of lives is the kind of human achievement I most admire. He has my deep respect.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Uğur Şahin
- Name (Japanese)
- ウール・シャヒン
- Reading
- うーる・しゃひん
- Born
- September 19, 1965 (age 60)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Virgo / Snake
- Origin
- İskenderun, Hatay Province, Turkey
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- oncologist / university teacher / entrepreneur / physician / chief executive officer
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of Cologne
Awards & achievements
- 2005 Georges Köhler Prize
- 2019 Mustafa Prize
- 2019 German Cancer Award
- 2020 Financial Times Person of the Year
- 2021 Axel Springer Award
- 2021 Knight Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
- 2021 Princess of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research
- 2021 honorary doctor of University of Cologne
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Uğur Şahin born?
Born September 19, 1965 (age 60).
Where is Uğur Şahin from?
Uğur Şahin is from İskenderun, Hatay Province, Turkey.
What does Uğur Şahin do?
Uğur Şahin works as oncologist, university teacher, entrepreneur, physician, chief executive officer.
University teacher — see all → · More people from Turkey →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-24
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.