Two skiers from south korea competing in the official journal, banned for life for sexual assault

Getty Images/AFP

AFP

Thursday, march 15, 2018 05:29

UPDATE
Thursday, march 15, 2018 05:29

Look at this article

SEOUL, South Korea | Two olympic athletes in south korea specialists moguls have been banned for life, accused of having assaulted physically and sexually by teammates, according to the Federation of south Korean ski (KSA) on Thursday.

Choi Jae-woo and Kim Ji-hyon, who have participated in the olympic Games in Pyeongchang last month, are accused of having assaulted physically and sexually by a female athlete” at a competition in Japan in early march, specified to the AFP a spokesman for the KSA.

After an investigation, “it has been decided to ban Choi and Kim permanently,” said the spokesman, adding that the two skiers would not be able to take license from the Federation of south Korean ski, a necessary prerequisite to participate in national and international competitions.

This penalty comes as the movement #MeToo (#Balancetonporc) is spreading in Korea, a country which remains by tradition a patriarchal despite its advanced economic and technology, where women have long been reluctant to give evidence of assaults suffered by men of power.

According to the spokesperson of the KSA, Choi, 24 years old, and Kim, 23 years old, have been drinking alcohol in their hotel room on the occasion of the stage of the freestyle world Cup in the japanese city of Akita. They have asked to have teammates that are hosted in a side room to come join them, and according to several media reports, they were assaulted when they refused their advances.

Choi is one of the skiers the most well-known in South Korea and occupies the 6th place in world Cup moguls. The Games in Pyeongchang last month, he reached the final of the competition but did not finish his second run. Kim was eliminated during qualifying.