On July 23, 1950 Tibor Rubin was serving as a rifleman in Korea when his unit was forced to retreat. He was ordered to stay behind and keep the road open for the withdrawing unit. During the 24-hour battle he single-handedly fought off an overwhelming number of North Korean troops. He inflicted severe casualties on the attacking unit and assisted in the capture of many prisoners. A few months later Chinese forces staged a night-time assault on his unit and Rubin manned a machine gun allowing the unit to retreat southward. He again inflicted heavy casualties on the attacking unit. During the battle he was severely wounded and was eventually captured by Chinese forces. Although the Chinese offered to release him early and return him to his native Hungary, he refused. He remained a prisoner and risked his life repeatedly by sneaking out at night to get food and medical supplies for other wounded prisoners.